


Lost in a Dream

by Shel_Kim



Category: Monsta X (Band)
Genre: Animal Attack, Animal Transformation, Bears, Bottom Yoo Kihyun, Claiming Bites, Curses, Drama, Explicit Sexual Content, Falling In Love, First Time, Fluff and Smut, Kissing, Lumberjack Shownu, M/M, Mating Bites, Native American/First Nations Legends & Lore, One Shot, Photographer Yoo Kihyun, Protectiveness, Reincarnation, Romance, Sassy Friend Minhyuk, Secrets, Shapeshifting, Smut, Snow, Some Humor, Spirit Animals, Top Son Hyunwoo | Shownu, Wolves
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-21
Updated: 2019-12-21
Packaged: 2021-02-26 15:41:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 21,861
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21880582
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shel_Kim/pseuds/Shel_Kim
Summary: Yoo Kihyun is a magazine photographer assigned to capture the atmospheric pictures of the changing seasons in a Canadian forest. While there, Kihyun bonds with and falls for a mysterious man who lives alone in the woods, and is hiding a remarkable secret.
Relationships: Son Hyunwoo | Shownu/Yoo Kihyun
Comments: 16
Kudos: 165





	Lost in a Dream

“You wanted to see me sir?” Yoo Kihyun asked his boss as he entered his office.

“Yes Kihyun, please come in,” the editor-in-chief requested, beckoning the brunette in with a wave.

Kihyun nodded before taking a seat in front of his boss’s desk. “Is everything alright sir?” he asked nervously.

“Oh absolutely,” the editor replied. “I was just looking over these photos you gathered for this month’s spread; the way you angled these is superb and I know the readers will enjoy them.”

“Well thank you sir, I appreciate it,” Kihyun quietly thanked as he lowered his head for a minute.

“Which is why I’m going ahead and giving you your assignment for next month, I want you to get started right away,” the editor informed. He reached over and handed Kihyun a brochure and a plane ticket. “It’s called Great Bear Rainforest, located in Canada. Our readers have been dying for foreign nature pictures and I think this would be a great place for you to start; plus considering fall is going on, you should be able to get some good shots of colors changing.”

“Is it a park or a rainforest, sir?” Kihyun asked. “From these pictures, it looks a lot like a forest park.”

“It’s both, they call it a rainforest, but I think it’s mostly just for marketing purposes; think of it as an enormous park,” the editor clarified.

Kihyun looked up at his boss. “How long would you like me to stay?” he wondered.

“Taking into account travel time, I’d say about five days,” the editor said. “Don’t worry, they have guides that take people onto trail tours in a huge circle around the perimeter, and you will even get to do some overnight camping on the trip.”

“Camping?” Kihyun asked. “Sir, no offense, but camping and I don’t mix very well; I mean taking pictures and then returning to a hotel with modern commodities is one thing, but staying out there twenty four seven –”

“Kihyun you’re one of my best photojournalists, I’m not asking you to move out there permanently, it’s only for a few days and if you get what the readers want, the pay is incredible; but if you don’t want the job, I can always offer it to the other photographers, Lee Minhyuk is always eager for a new challenge,” the editor reminded.

Sighing, Kihyun knew this would be too good of an opportunity to pass up, even if that meant putting aside his discomfort of germs for a short time. “I’ll do it sir, what’s the worst that can happen?” he responded.

“Good, your flight leaves in a few hours, so I’ll let you go home and pack a bag. Good luck and have fun,” the editor stated before Kihyun stood up and left.

“Camping, _you’re_ going to camp in the Canadian woods?” Kihyun’s friend, fellow photographer Minhyuk asked as he walked with Kihyun to the elevator. “This coming from a guy who takes his own sheets to a hotel every time he travels for work.”

“First of all, you can never be too careful in a hotel, and second of all, it’s only for a few days and the editor promised the pay was good; that’ll be my saving grace for this trip,” Kihyun replied.

“Well have fun, when you get back, we’ll have to meet up with Hyungwon so you can tell us all about it,” Minhyuk suggested.

“When’s he getting back from his assignment?” Kihyun wondered.

“Should be back any day now; can’t believe he got to go film the Grand Canyon,” Minhyuk informed. “The boss hasn’t even let me shoot outside of Korea yet.”

“Well you’re still the new kid here Minhyuk, don’t worry, it was the same with me and Hyungwon when we started; give it a few more months,” Kihyun recommended before stepping onto the elevator. “See you later.”

After arriving in Vancouver, Canada, Kihyun boarded a bus bound for the Great Bear Rainforest; looking over the brochure his boss had given him, Kihyun began to think more optimistically as he saw the many photo opportunities he would have. When the bus reached the rainforest park entrance, Kihyun stepped out into the cool Canadian environment, realizing just how much colder than Korea the area was. Grabbing his duffel bag, Kihyun walked over to the log building that sat at the entrance of the park, following the other tourists lead. Inside, Kihyun saw a small café serving a variety of hot drinks, giant TVs that showcased pictures of the rainforest, and multiple long lines of people anticipating a group tour. Looking around, Kihyun saw that there was a nonexistent line for the solo trail tours and smiled at his small stroke of luck as he walked up to the counter. After paying an admission price and letting his tour guide help him pack the necessary items correctly into a pack, Kihyun was then led out of the building and towards the rainforest trail. “First time in Canada?” the trail guide asked curiously.

“Yeah, on business getting some nice photographs for work,” Kihyun informed.

“You work for a magazine or something?” the guide wondered.

“Yeah I work for a really popular magazine in Korea,” Kihyun said.

“Well if it’s nice photos you’re looking for, you’ve come to the right place,” the trail guide stated. “In fact, I know an area where you can get some spectacular pictures.”

Kihyun perked up. “That sounds great,” he agreed.

After walking up the trail for several minutes, the guide paused and said “Here’s where we enter the area.”

Kihyun grew hesitant as he saw a small dirt path leading away from the main trail, along with a large ‘Do Not Enter’ sign nailed to a nearby tree. “Are you sure it’s okay, I mean the sign says –” Kihyun began.

“That’s just something we have to put up for people who don’t have a trail guide with them,” the man interrupted. “Don’t worry, I’ve done this many times before.”

Kihyun was still nervous, but remembered the possibility of some amazing photographic moments that could be available, so he took a deep breath and followed his guide onto the forbidden trail. As soon as he stepped foot onto the path, Kihyun noticed the atmosphere of the area was very different than that of the main trail, but pressed on anyway. The brunette stopped suddenly and felt himself gasp aloud when he saw giant claw marks on several nearby trees. “What kind of creature did these?” Kihyun inquired.

“More than likely a bear or a wolf,” the guide informed. “But there’s no need to worry, this time of year they head up towards the northern part of the forest; c’mon let’s keep going.” Kihyun swallowed worriedly, but continued forward, following his trail guide. A few minutes later, the two came upon a rapid-current river with only a large log available to them as a means of crossing. “Hope you got a good sense of balance,” the guide said as he took one step onto the log.

“Are you insane? I’m not going across on that,” Kihyun rejected, taking a few steps back.

“Why not? The best part of the park is across this river,” the guide informed.

“It’s not that, I just, I can’t swim very well and with the time of year it is, that water is probably freezing and I don’t want to die of hypothermia if I fall in,” Kihyun exasperated, crossing his arms and eyeing the hasty water.

“Okay if it’ll help you feel any better, you can go in front of me, that way if you feel wobbly, I can put my hands on your shoulders for reassurance,” the guide offered. “Look I’m telling ya, once we cross the river, it’s like you’re in a whole new place.”

Kihyun sighed, but did want good pictures for his boss, so he reluctantly agreed “Fine, but I think there should at least be a decent bridge made if you’re going to cross a river.”

After carefully walking across the log, the guide led Kihyun further into the forbidden area of the park, stopping ever so often so the brunette Korean photographer could capture more pictures of the amazing foliage and natural beauty around them. Following what felt like another hour of hiking, Kihyun’s guide stopped in a small clearing. “We’ll camp here for the night since it’s almost dusk,” he instructed, dropping his pack. “I’ll start setting up the tent if you’ll go gather some good size sticks for a fire.”

“Alright,” Kihyun said before heading off to search for the desired wood. While picking up sticks, Kihyun heard what sounded like leaves crunching from a few feet away. Quickly, the brunette turned to see what was causing the shifting leaves, but found nothing. “Hello?” he called softly, relieved when no one answered back. Figuring it was just a squirrel or rabbit, Kihyun took his sticks back to the campsite where his guide was exiting the tent.

Later, when the sun had set, Kihyun realized just how dark and eerie the forest was with no light except that of the fire and the moon overhead. “We should probably get some rest, got a long day ahead of us tomorrow,” the guide suggested, standing up.

“Okay,” Kihyun complied as he too stood and went into the tent. As he got into his sleeping bag, Kihyun didn’t see the trail guide zip up the tent most of the way; the guide then zipped himself up in his own sleeping bag as the two tried to get some rest. In what was presumably the middle of the night, Kihyun was just about to fall fully asleep when he felt something on top of him all of a sudden. Eyes shooting open, Kihyun saw his trail guide laying right on top of him. “What are you –” he started to ask, before the guide covered his mouth with his hand and shushed him.

“It’ll be over before you know it,” he muttered into Kihyun’s ear before slowly licking his cheek. “You can scream all you want, but there’s no one around us for miles; some have screamed til their throats burned, others just lie there like good boys, either way, they have the same outcome. Now which one are you gonna be?”

“Get the fuck off me!” Kihyun yelled as he thrashed about, trying to get out from underneath this psychopath.

“Ooh, I got a fighter, I like that,” the guide happily stated as he licked his lips, pinning Kihyun’s arms down next to his head.

The brunette Korean cried as his guide started biting at his neck lustfully. “Somebody help me, please help me!” Kihyun screamed as tears streamed down his face.

“Just let it happen, it’ll be all over soon,” the guide repeated as he began snaking his hand into Kihyun’s sleeping bag. Suddenly, there was a low growl coming from outside the tent, as well as the rustling of leaves. Kihyun paused his screaming, and even the guide hesitated as a large shadow moved across the tent, before the tent was slashed open and the guide was yanked out quickly by an unseen force, leaving Kihyun alone. The brunette lie there frozen as he heard his would-be rapist scream bloody murder as whatever dragged him out seemingly tore him apart. Soon, silence once again filled the woods as both the screaming and growling stopped. Kihyun was terrified to move, but knew he needed to cover himself up in case something was still out there. Quickly, Kihyun curled up in his sleeping bag and lie perfectly still, making sure he didn’t even breathe loudly. When what felt like hours passed, Kihyun had finally calmed down enough to where he considered falling asleep again. Finally, giving into his own wishes, Kihyun closed his heavy eyes, immediately drifting off to sleep.

Opening his tired eyes, Kihyun saw that it was finally daylight and felt safer as he yawned and sat up. Climbing out of the tent, Kihyun was almost struck frozen again when he saw blood splattered all over the campsite and even on some trees. Looking over by the ashy remains of the fire, Kihyun covered his mouth as he saw the mutilated corpse of his trail guide. It took everything Kihyun had in him to not vomit at the sight as he reached into his pocket and quickly fished out his phone. He wanted to call 911 and leave immediately, but to his dismay, Kihyun noticed there was no signal at all. “Fuck, fuck, no,” Kihyun grumbled in frustration, holding his device up in several directions, desperate for any connection. “Great, just great,” he muttered as he started to pack up the campsite as best he could into his backpack. Looking around, Kihyun tried to remember which way they had come from, but his lack of sleep was taking a toll on his thoughts. Kihyun noticed giant paw prints on the dirt, leading towards one direction of the trail; not wanting to risk running into whatever left the prints, Kihyun turned and began heading in the opposite direction. He walked for a while, snapping a few pictures as he went along, but mostly focusing on getting out of the woods and back to civilization. When he didn’t seem to be getting any closer to the forest entrance, Kihyun stopped and let out a frustrated yell as he gripped his head. “Why the fuck did I agree to this?!” he asked himself aloud. “I swear to God, I’m never coming back to this hellhole, grant it I find my way out of here first.”

After calming down, Kihyun realized he was going to have to spend another night in the woods, as the sun was beginning to set. The brunette Korean found a small clearing that would serve as his makeshift campsite for the night and began setting up the tent; it took him a few tries, but Kihyun finally got it. The hardest part was starting the fire, as Kihyun didn’t have any matches, so he attempted to create friction with two sticks, only to give up after a few minutes of it not working. After the sun had set, Kihyun sat in his tent in complete darkness, with only his phone to illuminate the small area as he searched his bag for something to eat, when he heard another low growling sound coming from outside, only this was different from the one he heard the night before. Turning off his light, Kihyun thought if he sat still and didn’t make any noise, then the growling would stop, but it didn’t. The growling outside his tent continued, even getting more aggressive as it got louder. Kihyun was starting to get really scared now, all alone in the dark with no proper weapon, no knowledge of how to handle wild animals, and no fire to fend it off. Finally, Kihyun relaxed slightly when the noise stopped, indicating the animal had seemingly left. Wanting to arm himself with something in case another animal showed up, Kihyun slowly left the safety of his tent, shining his phone light to look for a large stick. As he found one he liked, Kihyun moved to pick it up before hearing the same growling again. Quickly turning, Kihyun’s eyes widened in horror as he was face to face with a large, menacing-looking gray wolf standing only a few feet from him. The wolf began to creep towards Kihyun, as the brunette nervously swung his stick at the creature, narrowly missing it. Kihyun swung again and again, only for the wolf to jump up and grab hold of Kihyun’s arm with its mouth, teeth sinking into the brunette Korean’s flesh as Kihyun screamed and dropped the stick, as well as his phone. The wolf started to drag Kihyun away, threatening to rip his arm off in the process. Looking around, Kihyun noticed a decent sized rock and quickly grabbed it before striking the wolf in the face with it, causing the animal to yelp and release Kihyun’s arm. Taking the opportunity, Kihyun scrambled to his feet and began running into the pitch black forest, not caring that he left everything he had behind, he just wanted to get away from the wolf. As he ran, Kihyun heard the blood curdling howl from the wolf as it began to chase after him, growling as it hunted Kihyun. Hearing the vicious creature grow closer, Kihyun turned back for just a second to see how close the wolf was, only to trip over an exposed root, sending him down to the ground as he hit his head hard on a tree trunk. Groaning, Kihyun touched his now aching head before seeing the glowing eyes of the wolf grow closer, making Kihyun’s heart pound. As he braced himself for another attack by the wolf, Kihyun and the wolf both paused as another growl emerged from the opposite direction. Kihyun watched as a huge black bear ran past Kihyun and towards the wolf; the two creatures growled and gnashed their teeth at one another as they fought, while Kihyun remained frozen on the forest ground. The brunette Korean saw the wolf run off as the bear roared again, before turning to look at Kihyun, slowly approaching the injured photographer. Kihyun trembled as the bear started smelling him, nudging Kihyun ever so often with his nose, only for the brunette to pass out, accepting his fate.

When Kihyun opened his eyes, he sat up slowly, noticing he wasn’t in the forest anymore, but alone in a small log cabin. There were strips of homemade gauze around his wrist and forearm from where the wolf had bitten him. Kihyun looked down and examined the bed he was on; it wasn’t a traditional bed like his, but rather everything was made out of furs, the pillows, the blanket, even the mattress. Glancing around the rest of the cabin, Kihyun noticed how archaic everything seemed to be, like he had been sent back to the nineteenth century; from the stone fireplace on the far side of the cabin, to the makeshift eating utensils on the table. As he moved to get up, Kihyun paused as the only door to the small home opened, and a tall, raven haired, broad-shouldered man wearing a giant fur coat walked in, carrying an archer’s bow in one hand, and a couple of geese in the other hand. The man turned around and looked at Kihyun, catching the brunette off-guard with how attractive he was. “Oh, hello,” the man said with a smile as he set his things down on the table. “Glad to see you are awake finally. I was starting to think you would sleep the whole day.”

“Who are you, and where the hell am I?” Kihyun wondered, wanting to be wary of this stranger.

“My name is Shownu, this is my home,” the man introduced. “What do I call you?”

“Kihyun,” the brunette replied.

“Would you like some food Kihyun? It’ll take me a few minutes to prepare the meat, but I can start right away,” Shownu offered.

Truthfully, Kihyun was so hungry that he could eat anything at that moment. “Sure,” he agreed.

“Oh, I believe this is also yours,” Shownu said as he handed Kihyun his backpack.

“How did you find my stuff?” Kihyun inquired.

“I was out doing some hunting and stumbled across your campsite,” Shownu informed as he started preparing the geese to cook for him and Kihyun. The brunette watched as Shownu took a large knife and chopped off the heads casually before standing up and running outside, lurching over to vomit. “Is something wrong?” Shownu innocently asked as he stepped outside and watched Kihyun heave.

“That is absolutely repulsive,” Kihyun gasped as he caught his breath.

“You don’t like goose meat? I can find something else if you’d rather have fish or rabbit,” Shownu suggested.

“No not that, the fact that you can calmly hack them up like an animal is just disturbing,” Kihyun responded.

“How else am I supposed to get the meat off to cook?” Shownu inquired. “This is how I learned to do it.”

“When was that, in the prehistoric days?” Kihyun snapped before taking a deep breath. “I’m sorry, I just, I’m hungry, I need a bath, and I’m just ready to get out of these woods. When do you usually go to town?”

“Town?” Shownu asked confusedly. “I haven’t left this forest since I was born.”

Kihyun’s eyes widened. “Y-you’ve never been outside the forest? Ever?” Shownu nodded. “How the hell do you live like that? Without running water or clean sheets, or internet?”

“Everything I need is here in the woods, food, water, shelter during the bad weather, and furs for the winter; what else would I need?” Shownu asked.

“You poor, poor, sheltered man,” Kihyun lamented.

Shownu smiled and let out a small laugh. “I should get back to preparing our food,” he said before stepping back into the cabin. A few minutes later, Kihyun joined Shownu inside, watching as he tossed the goose meat into a large boiling pot of water that hung in the fireplace. Kihyun then observed Shownu cut up potatoes and carrots, tossing them in as well. After the food was ready, Shownu set a bowl in front of Kihyun and said “I hope you like it.”

Kihyun looked at the bland looking food in front of him, and then across the table at Shownu, currently devouring his own food. He tasted it and even though the meal wasn’t to his liking, he was hungry enough to push through that and ate quickly, wanting some nutrients in him, plus he knew it’d be rude to deny Shownu’s offering after rescuing him. “Thank you for the food,” Kihyun muttered. “I would like to clean myself, where is your bathroom at?”

“Bathroom?” Shownu repeated.

“Yes, the place you wash your body and relieve yourself of intestinal pressure,” Kihyun explained.

“Oh, if you need that, I can dig you a hole,” Shownu offered as he picked up his homemade shovel.

“Oh you can’t be serious,” Kihyun replied.

“How else are you supposed to do it?” Shownu innocently wondered. “It’s like a cycle, the earth gives us food, and we eat the food, and turn that into food for the earth.”

“My God, you’re like one of those survivalist, off-the-grid type people aren’t you?” Kihyun figured. “I’m scared to ask where you clean yourself.”

“Over there in the river,” Shownu said, pointing about a hundred feet away. “There I can wash my body, get clean drinking and cooking water, and sanitize animal furs before putting them to use. If you want, I’m about to head over there myself and clean out these goose bones; I’ll get you some soap and you can wash off.”

Sighing, Kihyun reluctantly agreed “Well it’s better than nothing I suppose.”

“Wonderful, wait here,” Shownu requested before heading back to the cabin. A few minutes later, Shownu returned to Kihyun and handed him a small pad of soap and a fur pelt. “Here you are, soap to clean your body, and a fur to dry off.”

“Thanks,” Kihyun muttered.

“C’mon, let’s head over,” Shownu suggested, leading Kihyun over to the riverside.

Once they reached the riverbed, Kihyun looked at Shownu and asked “Could you please turn away from me?”

“Why?” Shownu innocently wondered. “We’re both men.”

“You’re also a stranger, for all I know, you could have ill intentions towards me,” Kihyun retorted.

“I do not have any bad intentions towards you, just want to help,” Shownu responded as he smiled at Kihyun.

“Well you can help me by please turning while I undress and enter the water,” Kihyun repeated.

“Very well,” Shownu agreed, turning his back to Kihyun.

Quickly, the brunette Korean undressed himself and stepped into the river, immediately finding the water to be cooler than expected. “Whoa,” Kihyun exclaimed in a high pitched voice as goosebumps exploded across his skin.

“Are you okay?” Shownu asked, beginning to turn around.

“I’m fine, just please keep your back turned,” Kihyun requested, as he was only thigh deep in the water. “The water is just really cold.”

“You have to put your whole body in at once so that it will adjust faster,” Shownu recommended. “If you go slowly, you could get sick.”

“Fine,” Kihyun reluctantly agreed before taking a deep breath and forcing himself into deeper water that went up to his mid-chest. “This is deep enough for me.”

Turning around, Shownu commented “You should try going a little further into the water, submerge your whole self.”

“I have to stay where my feet can touch,” Kihyun replied.

“Do you have a fear of water?” Shownu asked.

“It’s not that, I just can’t swim very well,” Kihyun explained.

“I see, now I will join you in the water so I can get these goose bones cleaned,” Shownu said before beginning to strip down himself.

Kihyun froze in admiration as he saw what kind of body Shownu had been hiding under his coat; large, strong-looking back muscles, perfect sized biceps on tanned arms, but that didn’t compare to what Kihyun saw when Shownu turned around and faced him. The brunette couldn’t stop looking at Shownu’s broad chest, accessorized by two healthy sized pectoral muscles, and a six pack running down his abdominals, mesmerizing Kihyun’s eyes as they instinctively wandered downward, forcing Kihyun’s mouth to drop as he discovered that Shownu’s lower half was just as well-endowed as his upper half. “Whoa,” he inaudibly muttered under his breath.

Noticing Kihyun’s expression, Shownu innocently turned back to look around before inquiring “What’s wrong, did you see something?”

“Oh I definitely see something,” Kihyun confirmed, eyes still glued to Shownu’s pelvis.

After glancing back another time, Shownu continued “Well whatever it was must’ve left.” The raven haired man then grabbed the bones he intended to clean and waded into the water, but only waist deep. “The water feels very pleasant today, usually around this time, the water gets colder as the trees start changing colors.”

“Thanks for the heads-up,” Kihyun sarcastically mumbled as he shivered, rapidly scrubbing his body with the homemade soap Shownu had provided for him. As he washed himself, Kihyun observed Shownu clean out the bones until they turned a greyish almost white color. “What do you use those for?” he questioned.

“There are many things I can use these for, but usually I like to sharpen them into knives or spear tips,” Shownu informed.

“Interesting,” Kihyun muttered before turning to his injured arm. He began to unwrap the gauze so he could wash it better. Taking the gauze off, Kihyun looked at the inflamed, swollen skin of his forearm and saw the large puncture wounds that resembled a bite.

Just before he could begin to scrub the wound, Shownu grabbed his wrist suddenly, causing Kihyun to gasp. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten you,” Shownu apologized, releasing Kihyun’s wrist. “It’s just that, your wound does not need to be scrubbed by the soap, the duck fat that’s in it will irritate the wound further.”

“Well what do you suggest? I’m looking around and there’s not a pharmacy or ER for miles,” Kihyun reminded.

“I do not know what those are, but if you are wanting medicine for your wound, I have a remedy that should help it heal faster,” Shownu offered. “But to do that, we need to go inside.”

“Fine, I’m already bathing in river water and scrubbing myself with duck fat soap, it can’t get much worse than that,” Kihyun mumbled.

Once back inside Shownu’s cabin, the raven haired Korean gathered marigolds and garlic and threw them into a pot of boiling water sitting on the fire place, before dipping in a small wooden bowl to collect some of the concoction. “Come sit right here,” he called to Kihyun, who was rummaging through his bag for a hairbrush. Kihyun obliged Shownu and sat down on the wooden bench, by the table, next to him. Gently, Shownu rolled up Kihyun’s sleeve to reveal the bite mark again before taking a piece of cloth and soaking it in the water, before applying it to Kihyun’s arm. “This should help the redness go down,” Shownu said as he cut up more strips of cloth with his knife and placed them into the bowl to soak.

As he did this, Kihyun watched him, fascinated by Shownu’s way of living. “Thank you Shownu, I appreciate all of this,” he stated as Shownu began laying the additional strips on his arm.

“It’s not a problem at all,” Shownu replied, looking up at Kihyun with a smile. Kihyun saw as his dark eyes glistened by the fire light, giving them a honey-like aura. “I am curious though, what were you doing in this part of the forest, people typically do not venture here.”

“I was taking some pictures for my job, I’m a photojournalist for a magazine,” Kihyun explained before reaching into his bag and pulling out his camera. “I take pictures with this and put them in a small book so that others can look at them and admire them. Want me to show you how it works?”

“Sure,” Shownu agreed.

“Okay, stand up near the fireplace,” Kihyun instructed as he positioned Shownu where he wanted him. “Good, now just stand still and look right here at me.” Kihyun backed up a few steps before zooming in slightly on Shownu’s face, snapping the picture. The sudden flash of light startled Shownu as he covered his eyes and dropped to the floor, letting out a quick yelp. “Oh my god, I’m sorry, I didn’t think about the flash,” Kihyun apologized as he hurried over to the kneeling raven haired man.

“Why is there lightning in your camera box?” Shownu inquired as he rubbed his eyes.

“It’s a flash, it helps the picture be clearer as the photo is taken. Look, you can see yourself on the screen,” Kihyun explained before letting Shownu see himself on the camera display.

“Wow, that is fascinating, and this is not dangerous to use? It doesn’t trap your soul inside or anything?” Shownu innocently asked.

Kihyun laughed a little. “No, nothing like that, it’s very safe; millions of people use these all the time to take pictures.”

“What do you take pictures of usually?” Shownu asked.

“Nature, animals, seasons, things like that,” Kihyun said.

“Do you like nature?” Shownu wondered.

“I like to look at it, but I do not enjoy staying in it, it’s not how I was brought up. I was raised in the city, so this is all new to me,” Kihyun replied causing Shownu to laugh quietly. “You said you have never been out of the forest before, why not?”

Shownu was quiet for a moment before muttering “I just never had the need to; everything I could ever need is around me. I like it here.”

“Don’t you ever get lonely?” Kihyun asked.

Shownu smirked. “Yes, I do miss companionship, but isolation is what I deserve,” he responded.

“What you deserve? What do you mean by that?” Kihyun inquired.

“Nothing, I shouldn’t have said anything; why don’t I start making us some dinner? I’ll go out and look for some rabbits or deer,” Shownu quickly said as he stood up, slipped his coat on and grabbed his bow and quiver of arrows before exiting the cabin.

Kihyun sat there in the still silence of the cabin for a few moments, noting how strange Shownu’s behavior had become; the topic of him living here must be something sensitive for him, Kihyun thought to himself. Wanting to help Shownu in any way he could, Kihyun looked around the cabin to see if he could find something to do. Noticing a nearby basket filled with vegetables, Kihyun grabbed a couple of potatoes and carrots and placed them in a small bowl before pouring water over them. As he let the vegetables soak for a minute to rinse off some of the dirt, Kihyun found one of Shownu’s homemade knives resting above the fireplace and grabbed it, noting it was similar in size to an everyday steak knife. Kihyun began to carefully peel the skin from the carrots and potatoes before dicing them into small pieces. Now all he could do was wait for Shownu to return. As the sun was beginning to set, Kihyun turned his head as he saw the door to the cabin open up and in walk Shownu with a couple of dead, already skinned rabbits. “There you are, I was beginning to wonder if you’d be back before the sun went down,” Kihyun said as Shownu lay the rabbits on the table.

“I’m sorry, I remember that you don’t like watching me prepare the meat after it’s killed, so I wanted to do that before I came inside,” Shownu responded, taking off his coat before standing next to the table. “The only thing is that I need to cut it up some more, is that okay?”

“Yeah, now it looks just like regular meat, and it doesn’t have a cute, fluffy face anymore so go ahead and hack away,” Kihyun replied.

Shownu smiled and quietly laughed before he grabbed a big knife off of the fireplace mantle and began to cut up the rabbit meat. “I noticed you cut up some vegetables for us, thank you, that will save me some preparation time,” he said. “It was alright to do with your hurt arm?”

“It was no trouble, I like to cook, so this only took a few minutes; of course if I was in my own kitchen I could’ve had everything done a lot faster,” Kihyun informed.

“Yeah, everything is probably done a little slower out here than what you’re used to,” Shownu reminded as he tossed the rabbit meat into the pot of boiling water over the fire place before adding in the vegetables as well. “Since you say you like to cook, would you like to watch the food until it’s ready? I need to chop up some wood for the night so the fire doesn’t get low; I can feel in the air that it will be very cold tonight.”

“Sure, anything I can do to help,” Kihyun agreed, grabbing a big, homemade wooden spoon and stirring the mixture. As Kihyun did his best to prepare the dinner, he heard chopping noises outside and curiously peeked outside to see Shownu cutting up the wood logs. He observed how rhythmic Shownu’s actions were, and how smoothly he was able to do what Kihyun considered to be a difficult thing, but saw how the repetitive actions had caused sweat to form not only on Shownu’s forehead, but also on his torso as well, as his old looking shirt had clung to his skin, unbeknownst to Shownu, teasing Kihyun with another glimpse of his body. Kihyun’s cheeks grew warm, he knew he should turn back to the cooking, but didn’t want to look away just yet, eventually forcing himself to once Shownu had finished the job.

After the two ate their dinner, Kihyun curiously asked “How do you bathe in the winter? Doesn’t it snow like a lot here? Does the river freeze?”

“Yes, it snows for many days here; that is why during the snowy days, I bring in the large wooden basin I made. I keep it behind the cabin during the warmer seasons so that I have more space inside,” Shownu explained. “It’ll be time soon enough, once the river gets too cold to get in, and to answer your other question, no the river doesn’t freeze, but it’s not safe to get in during the snowy season.” Shownu stood up and began to add more logs to the fire as he added “The sun is now down, we should get some rest; the days are starting to grow shorter.”

“Where would you like me to sleep?” Kihyun inquired.

“You can sleep in my bed, I’ll stay here by the fire and keep it going so you don’t get sick,” Shownu replied.

“Are you sure? This is your cabin and I don’t want to be rude,” Kihyun said.

“Of course, it is no problem at all,” Shownu promised.

“Alright, well thank you,” Kihyun muttered before walking to the other side of the cabin where Shownu’s bed was. He climbed on top of the animal furs and buried himself in the soft, furry skins, listening to the sounds of the fire crackling and the critters that made noises in the surrounding forest. Before drifting off to sleep, Kihyun took one final glance over to Shownu, who was lying on his coat next to the fireplace, resting peacefully. “Goodnight Shownu,” Kihyun whispered under his breath before closing his eyes and allowing sleep to take him.

The next morning, Kihyun awakened to find the cabin still dark, but Shownu was adding more wood to the fire. Kihyun could smell something cooking, and slowly sat up, stretching his tired body. Shownu looked over at him and smiled. “Oh, I see you’re awake now, how did you rest?”

Very well actually,” Kihyun admitted before standing up and walking over to the table, taking a seat across from Shownu. “What are you making?”

“I went out earlier and got some fish; they are moving through here rapidly this time of year, heading for warmer waters downstream,” Shownu explained. The raven haired man then dumped the fish from a homemade pan onto a plate and presented it to Kihyun. “Do you like fish?”

“Yeah, it’s good, we eat it where I’m from,” Kihyun confirmed before taking a bite. As the two ate, Kihyun paused as he heard howling coming from the distance. “What’s that?”

Shownu swallowed his fish and calmly said “Just wolves.”

“ _Just_ wolves?” Kihyun repeated. “What if they come here to the cabin?”

“They won’t, trust me, they know better,” Shownu muttered. “They know what would happen if I saw them near here. Do not worry Kihyun, I will make sure nothing happens to you.”

“Well thank you, that makes me feel a lot better,” Kihyun agreed as he looked down at his food, trying to conceal his smile.

After breakfast, Shownu asked “How does your arm feel today?”

“Much better, I think those special soaked bandages really helped,” Kihyun replied. “I was thinking today I’d go out and take more pictures for my work.”

“Great, I’ll show you some of my favorite places and views in the forest,” Shownu offered.

“That’d be very helpful, last thing I want is to get lost again,” Kihyun said.

“Alright, let’s head out,” Shownu suggested as the two stood up. Opening the door to the cabin, a strong gust of wind immediately hit them both, causing Kihyun to wrap his arms around himself. “Oh, the weather has grown colder overnight. You need a stronger layer.” Shownu took off his large coat, draping it over Kihyun’s shoulders, which was already two sizes too big for the smaller Korean.

“Shownu, I can’t take your coat, what are you going to use?” Kihyun asked.

“Do not worry Kihyun, I have another coat I can use; I was blessed with many furs this year, so I was able to make a second coat,” Shownu informed as he slipped on the additional coat. Kihyun grinned as Shownu led him out of the cabin and into the woods. Looking up, Kihyun noticed the dark rain clouds overhead as the chilly air blustered past him and Shownu.

Kihyun silently followed Shownu around, taking in the evergreen trees, and listening to the birds chirping and pine needles and leaves crunching under their feet. Suddenly, Shownu stopped right in front of Kihyun, causing the brunette to ask “What’s wrong Shownu?”

Shownu put a finger to his lips before directing Kihyun’s attention several feet away, where a deer was eating berries off a low hanging tree. “Take picture,” he whispered into Kihyun’s ear.

He nodded before raising his camera and snapping several pictures of the deer. “Wow, so beautiful,” Kihyun muttered.

“I will show you my favorite place,” Shownu said, gently taking Kihyun’s wrist and pulling him along.

After several minutes of walking, Shownu and Kihyun reached the edge of a tall cliff. Next to the cliff was a waterfall that emptied into the river below, and in the distance, Kihyun could see the top of the surrounding forest, as well as the snow-covered mountains in the close distance. “Wow, this is incredible,” Kihyun stated, raising his camera to take more pictures.

“This is my favorite place to stand. Here, I feel like I’m overlooking the universe in the Heavens, it is a very peaceful view,” Shownu remarked. “I feel as though I’m staring into the abyss of eternity. You can even see my home from here.” Shownu pointed down the river to where his little cabin sat in the opening next to the water.

“I must admit, this is one of the most amazing sights I’ve captured in all my years of experience,” Kihyun commented. “This view alone is causing me to reevaluate my opinion on the woods.”

Shownu smiled. “I’m glad you enjoy it,” he said. “Maybe you could enjoy the view with me more often.”

“Maybe,” Kihyun replied with a grin across his lips as he looked at Shownu. “But soon I’m going to need to return home; I have a deadline and need to get my pictures turned in.”

“I understand,” Shownu responded. “I shall take you to the trail in the morning, it is too late in the day for us to travel there.”

“That’s fine,” Kihyun agreed. “As long as I am not being a burden to you.”

“Of course not, I have enjoyed your companionship over the past several days, it was been more than wonderful,” Shownu said. “We should start heading back to my home, the sun will be setting soon and I still must find dinner and cut firewood for the night.”

“I wish I could help with either of those things, but I have no idea how to hunt or chop wood,” Kihyun apologized.

“Maybe one day I can teach you,” Shownu suggested.

“I’d like that,” Kihyun confirmed as they started walking back down to Shownu’s cabin.

“In the meantime, I don’t mind doing everything for you, you are a visitor in my home, so I must make sure you are comfortable,” Shownu reiterated.

A blush crept across Kihyun’s cheeks. “I can at least cook the meal again, so everything is not put on you alone,” he offered.

“Thank you, if you insist, I would greatly appreciate it,” Shownu said.

After Shownu had captured and de-feathered a wild quail, Kihyun began to prepare the bird as best he could, placing it into the pan they had used for breakfast and cutting up onions and corn while the quail cooked. Kihyun could hear Shownu grunting outside as he chopped the wood for the night, and couldn’t help himself; Kihyun stood up from the table and walked back over to the window, peeking outside at Shownu raising the axe again to slice another piece of wood in half. His shirt was off, exposing his bare, tan skin to the chilly air, but Kihyun figured he wanted to cool off, as he could see sweat dripping down Shownu’s face. Shownu’s muscles instinctively flexed as he continued chopping, and Kihyun couldn’t turn away as he blushed at the sight of the attractive man, subconsciously wondering what Shownu’s body would feel like pressed against his own. After dinner was finished, at Shownu’s behest, Kihyun headed to bed for the night, wanting to rest up for the hike back to the trail the next day. As he drifted to sleep, Kihyun swore he could hear what sounded like something being carved from the other end of the cabin.

The weather was once again cloudy and cold the following day as Kihyun and Shownu walked through the forest. Kihyun couldn’t believe just how far he had traveled into the woods, and just how massive it really was. “I don’t know how you can find your way through all this and not get lost,” Kihyun commented after about an hour of walking.

“Well, when you’re raised here, you learn through the years where to go and where not to go; where there are shortcuts, and where there are dead ends,” Shownu explained.

“Huh, similar to the city in a way,” Kihyun noted.

Soon after, the two reached the log bridge that Kihyun had crossed a few days prior. “Well, this is as far as I am allowed to go, I cannot cross the bridge,” Shownu informed.

“Why can’t you cross?” Kihyun wondered.

“It is difficult to explain, I’m sorry Kihyun, I just can’t,” Shownu said. “I hope you understand and can forgive me.”

“Um, yeah sure,” Kihyun replied, confused why Shownu had become defensive all of a sudden.

“Before you leave, I want to give this to you,” Shownu stated as he pulled a small wooden bear out of his pocket and handed it to Kihyun, wrapping his large hands around Kihyun’s tightly. “It is a whistle; if you decide in the future to return to the forest, blow this and wait right here for me, I’ll come get you. I do not want you to venture into the woods on your own, there are very dangerous creatures that live in the forest, and I do not want you to get lost or injured or worse, killed. Please promise me that you will wait here.”

“Yeah, I promise,” Kihyun agreed. “But will you be able to hear it? I mean your cabin is so far from here.”

“Don’t worry, my hearing is excellent, I will be able to hear it,” Shownu promised. “I wish you well Kihyun, and I hope you have safe travels back to where you came from. Gods willing, I will see you again one day.”

“Thank you for everything Shownu, and yes, you will see me again, hopefully soon,” Kihyun replied, as he and Shownu smiled at one another, before he turned and slowly walked across the log bridge. Once he had made it across, Kihyun turned to wave to Shownu, but found that the man was gone. Sighing, Kihyun headed down the trail until he reached the ‘Do Not Enter’ sign, carefully stepping over it before turning in the direction of the rainforest entrance.

After getting back to Korea and into his apartment, the first thing Kihyun did was shower and charge his now dead phone. Once his body was cleaned, Kihyun started his laundry. He was about to throw in all of his clothes when he paused for a minute and picked up the shirt he had worn the last night he had been in Shownu’s cabin. Bringing it to his face, Kihyun slowly inhaled, as the smoky scent of the cabin came back to the brunette. Smiling, Kihyun set the shirt aside before dumping the rest of the clothes into the washing machine. As his clothes washed, Kihyun sat on his couch with his laptop, looking over the photos he had taken from his trip. Kihyun stopped when he reached the picture that he’d taken of Shownu. Laughing quietly at the memory, Kihyun copied the picture onto his laptop to save, before hearing his phone ring. Picking it up, Kihyun saw it was Minhyuk, so he answered “Hey Minhyuk, what’s up?”

“Hey man, what’s been going on? We’ve been trying to get ahold of you for the past couple of days to see how your trip was going,” Minhyuk informed. “Me and Hyungwon have been worried sick, because you haven’t been answering the phone.”

“Sorry, I was somewhere with no signal and the battery was dead,” Kihyun replied.

“Whoa, that must’ve sucked,” Minhyuk remarked.

“Actually it wasn’t that bad,” Kihyun admitted, glancing over at his laptop to look at Shownu’s picture again.

“Wasn’t that bad? Damn Kihyun, what happened to you?” Minhyuk asked.

“Nothing, why does something need to happen to me for me to change my opinion about the woods?” Kihyun inquired.

After a moment of silence, Minhyuk stated “You met a guy, didn’t you?”

“What? That’s crazy, no I didn’t,” Kihyun denied.

“Oh my god yes you did, okay don’t move, Hyungwon and I are gonna come over and you’re gonna spill everything,” Minhyuk excitedly said. “See you soon.”

“No, Minhyuk, no I –” Kihyun started before Minhyuk disconnected the call. Sighing, Kihyun laid his phone down before returning to his laptop.

About half an hour later, there was a knock at Kihyun’s apartment door. Kihyun stood up and walked over to let in Minhyuk and Hyungwon. “Bitch, dish on your trip, who did you meet?” Minhyuk questioned as he plopped down on Kihyun’s couch.

“I don’t wanna talk about it, it’s nothing too serious yet,” Kihyun responded. “I don’t even know if I’m gonna see him again or not.”

“Is this what he looks like?” Hyungwon asked, turning the laptop to show Minhyuk and Kihyun the picture of Shownu.

“Yes that’s him, that’s Shownu,” Kihyun quietly said, feeling a blush creep across his cheeks as he glanced at Shownu.

“Wham, slam, thank you ma’am, that is a fine piece of man right there,” Minhyuk commented.

“Yeah Kihyun, you hooked a good one,” Hyungwon added.

“I didn’t hook anyone, it was by pure miracle chance that I encountered Shownu,” Kihyun replied.

“How did you guys meet?” Hyungwon inquired as he sat on the couch next to Minhyuk.

“Yeah, and don’t leave out any of the juicy details,” Minhyuk requested.

Kihyun sighed, but agreed and began to describe everything that happened; from almost being raped by his tour guide, to his run in with a wolf, and finally to waking up in Shownu’s cabin and spending a few days with the rugged man, learning about a more simplistic way of living. “So did you guys fuck?” Minhyuk bluntly asked.

“Good lord Minhyuk, no we didn’t do that, we just met,” Kihyun rebuffed.

“Never stopped me before,” Minhyuk proudly stated.

“Anyways, so are you gonna see your lumberjack, survivalist prince again?” Hyungwon inquired.

“I don’t know, I mean it’d be nice to see him again. Shownu was very sweet to me, and knows how to take care of himself,” Kihyun noted.

“It also helps that he looks like a smooth piece of caramel,” Minhyuk added.

Ignoring Minhyuk, Kihyun continued “I’d love to see Shownu once more, but I don’t know if I can get away from work.”

“Why don’t you just tell the boss that you need more time in the rainforest?” Hyungwon suggested. “Judging by the quality of the pictures and your seniority at the magazine, he’d probably let you go back.”

“Maybe,” Kihyun said.

Later that night, Kihyun lie alone in bed, trying to get some rest, but his subconscious was causing his dreams to produce very vivid images.

_*Kihyun’s dream*_

Kihyun was in Shownu’s cabin, watching the raven haired man place logs into the fire and stoke it around as nighttime set in over the forest. “It looks like it will snow tonight,” Shownu commented as he glanced outside.

Turning, Kihyun saw light flakes begin to fall from the sky, indicating that Shownu was correct in his assumption. “Will we be able to stay warm?” Kihyun wondered.

“Don’t worry, I won’t let you get cold,” Shownu promised as he stood up and removed his coat, revealing his chiseled chest underneath. He began walking over towards Kihyun, who just realized he was in Shownu’s bed. Without saying a word, Shownu paused at the foot of the bed, unfastened his pants and let them fall around his ankles, revealing his entire body to Kihyun. The brunette Korean smiled before holding out his arms, welcoming Shownu as he climbed onto the bed and crawled up Kihyun’s body. Shownu then took Kihyun’s lips in his own and kissed him gently, yet fervently, making Kihyun moan. His lips travelled down to Kihyun’s neck as Kihyun raked his fingertips up Shownu’s strong back muscles, feeling his powerful body under his touch. Shownu slipped his hands underneath Kihyun’s long nightshirt, and pushed it up and off the brunette, leaving his skin exposed to the cool air. Goosebumps erupted over Kihyun’s flesh as Shownu’s warm breath blanketed him and his mouth kissed around Kihyun’s collarbone. Returning to be face to face with one another, Shownu stroked his fingertips across Kihyun’s face as they kissed again. “Don’t worry, I will keep you safe, I won’t let anything happen to you,” Shownu whispered before Kihyun moaned out his lover’s name, feeling a pressure in his lower body.

_*End of dream*_

Kihyun awoke with a gasp as he sat up in bed. He looked around his bedroom as he caught his breath, before feeling a tightness in his boxer shorts. “Did that really just happen?” Kihyun whispered aloud to himself in an almost annoyed tone. Turning over on his side, Kihyun grabbed the t-shirt he’d worn in Shownu’s cabin and pulled it closer, inhaling the smoky scent. He thought back to the past few days of spending time with Shownu, watching him chop wood, prepare food, take him through the woods, Kihyun couldn’t help but grin at the memories. “I miss you, you simple-minded beautiful man,” Kihyun confessed quietly, burying his face in the shirt before drifting back to sleep.

The next day, as Kihyun sat at his desk, he listened to the monotonous sounds of keyboards typing and phones ringing throughout the room. In that moment, he truly missed the silence of the forest and the chirping of birds, and the crackling of the fire in Shownu’s cabin. Standing up, Kihyun grabbed the manila folder with the photos he’d taken over the past few days and walked down to his editor’s office. He knocked on the door before the editor called him in. “Ah Kihyun, welcome back, how was the Great Bear Rainforest?” the editor asked.

“Absolutely spectacular sir,” Kihyun stated. “I gathered some rather nice photos while I was there.”

Kihyun handed the folder to his editor, who took them and began to look over the pictures. “Well done Kihyun, these are incredible, excellent angles, wonderful quality, I’m greatly impressed,” the editor complimented. “Now I need to find you a new assignment.”

Clearing his throat, Kihyun remarked “Actually sir, I was wondering if I could possibly return to Great Bear Rainforest.” Seeing his editor raise his eyebrows, Kihyun continued “I was thinking maybe return to gather pictures of the winter season. As I was leaving, I was told that winter would be arriving this week, and fresh snow pictures always are a big hit with the subscribers. What’s your opinion on that sir?”

After a moment of silence, the editor nodded. “I like it, it’d be a great piece for our Christmas edition. Very well Kihyun, if you want you can leave Thursday, take the weekend, and head back to the rainforest; I expect nothing but the best,” he said.

“Yes sir,” Kihyun replied. Once he had exited the editor’s office, Kihyun allowed a large smile to appear across his lips as his heart beat faster.

Kihyun tried to hide his smile behind his hands before he heard Minhyuk call to him. “Hey man, what are you so happy about?”

“The boss really liked my pictures,” Kihyun informed.

“That’s good,” Minhyuk said. “Wait, there’s something more, isn’t there?”

“Well he did also approve of me returning to the rainforest to collect more pictures this weekend,” Kihyun quickly said as he started walking back to his desk, with Minhyuk following.

“Oh my god, you wanted to see that Shownu guy again, didn’t you?” Minhyuk asked with a grin. “I bet you didn’t even tell the boss about meeting him.”

“Of course not, the boss doesn’t need to know every single detail of my work explorations,” Kihyun remarked.

“I bet that’s not all the exploration you’ll be doing on your next trip, huh Kihyun?” Minhyuk joked, nudging Kihyun.

The brunette sighed. “Minhyuk, this is not the place to talk about that; and for the record, if I want to see Shownu again, then that’s my business, he’s a very nice man and I had a good time with him,” Kihyun informed.

“Maybe next time, you’ll have a great time with him, if you catch my drift,” Minhyuk said before heading back to his own desk.

That following Thursday, Kihyun was packing a duffel bag for his return to the Canadian rainforest. This time however, he made sure to pack extra items to give to Shownu; seasonings for his food, flannel shirts for the upcoming winter, and more utensils, a few things he would have to buy once he landed in Canada. Upon reaching the rainforest entrance, Kihyun walked down the trail, keeping his eyes peeled for the ‘Do Not Enter’ sign. A smile appeared across Kihyun’s lips once he found the sign. Looking around, Kihyun made sure no one saw him as he stepped over the barrier and hurried down the path before someone passed by and saw him. After a few minutes of walking, Kihyun came across the log bridge, noticing that the water level was a little higher than last time. Carefully, Kihyun stepped over the log to the other side, minding his footing. Once he had reached sturdy ground again, Kihyun remembered what Shownu had requested from him and reached into his pocket, pulling out the small wooden whistle Shownu had made for him. Placing the whistle against his lips, Kihyun blew it, listening to the high pitched sound echo throughout the forest. After a few minutes of waiting, Kihyun blew the whistle again, as Shownu still hadn’t arrived. “Where is he?” Kihyun whispered. Glancing down at his phone, Kihyun noted that twenty minutes had passed, but Shownu still hadn’t come. “Maybe if I walk into the forest a little more, he’ll be able to hear me better,” Kihyun wondered as he began walking into the woods slowly, occasionally blowing the whistle a few more times. “Shownu? Shownu? It’s me, Kihyun,” the brunette Korean called out, listening carefully for a response. Suddenly, Kihyun stopped, hearing rustling coming from nearby. “Shownu?”

From behind the trees emerged a man, but he was not Shownu. He looked a little younger, and not as built as Shownu, but still very lean and even dressed similarly to Shownu, although his clothes looked more disheveled and torn, and he had a small, distinct scar near his right eye. A smile appeared on the mysterious man’s lips as he looked Kihyun up and down. “Hello, what are you doing so far out here?” he asked in a low, almost seductive voice.

“I – I um,” Kihyun started, backing away from the man.

“Don’t be scared of me, I wouldn’t hurt something as pretty as you,” the man muttered, stepping closer to Kihyun. “What’s your name?”

“K-Kihyun,” the brunette replied nervously.

The young man laughed quietly, sending a chill up and down his spine. “Well it’s nice to meet you Kiki,” he said. Kihyun swallowed roughly. “Why don’t you come with me, and I’ll help you get somewhere warm and safe.”

“That, that’s okay,” Kihyun denied, taking another step backwards. “I-I’m waiting on my friend.”

“We can wait for him at my home,” the man lowly suggested, grabbing Kihyun’s wrist tightly.

“No, let go of me,” Kihyun demanded as he struggled against the man.

“Kihyun!” the brunette heard be called from close by. The next thing he knew, Kihyun saw Shownu rushing up to him, yanking the man’s grip from Kihyun, and positioning himself in front of Kihyun protectively. Narrowing his gaze at the man, Shownu stated “What are you doing here Changkyun? Why are you bothering him?”

“He looked lonely and abandoned, like a little lost sheep,” Changkyun replied as a smile creeped across his lips and he glanced over to Kihyun again.

Shownu growled in an intimidating way, almost scaring Kihyun by how animalistic he sounded. “Don’t you dare come near him again, I’ll not warn you another time,” Shownu ordered. He then turned to Kihyun and took the brunette’s hand, pulling him along as they hurried down the path.

Watching Shownu leave with Kihyun in tow, Changkyun grinned and laughed quietly to himself. “Ready to play the game a second time, are we Shownu? Guess you didn’t learn the consequences the first time,” he mumbled before retreating into another part of the woods.

After they had been walking for several minutes, Kihyun asked “Shownu, what’s going on? Who was that?”

Shownu paused and turned to face Kihyun, snapping “I told you not to travel into the forest by yourself. You promised me.”

“I’m sorry Shownu, I was just worried because I had been waiting a while,” Kihyun apologized.

Shownu took a deep breath and calmed his tone. “No, it is my fault, I didn’t come to you faster,” Shownu replied. “That was Changkyun, he is supposed to stay in the southern part of the forest with his two friends, while I stay in the north, that was our arrangement; but it seems like he has chosen to ignore the rules. Now that he has seen you, I can’t allow you to travel alone through the woods, he knows your scent; if he gets ahold of you –” Shownu hesitantly stopped and placed a hand on Kihyun’s face, looking the brunette over. “I do not want to think of what might happen to you.” The two looked at one another silently for several moments as Kihyun slowly inched closer to Shownu.

“I will be careful Shownu, and I’m sorry I didn’t follow your instructions; I see now that you have a good reason for everything,” Kihyun said.

Shownu smiled. “I am happy that you decided to return and spend more time in the forest,” he responded as the two continued walking back to the cabin.

A grin appeared across Kihyun’s lips. “Well, I really enjoyed spending time with you; you help me have a newfound appreciation for the outdoors,” he confessed. “So I thought about coming back to spend a few days with you and hopefully get some pictures of some snowfall.”

“The ground has started to become frosted more in the morning; I think the snow will set in soon,” Shownu informed. “This past week, the weather has been surprising, more rain than anything else. Today is the first day of sun ever since you left. Maybe you are a good luck charm.” Kihyun felt his cheeks grow warm at Shownu’s statement. 

Once they reached Shownu’s cabin and went inside, Kihyun began to pull things out of his duffel bag. “I brought some things for you that I think you will like and find useful,” he said. Shownu sat down at the table and stared at the bag like a curious schoolboy, as Kihyun pulled out salt, pepper, forks and spoons, a few flannel shirts, and flashlights. “These are for you.” Kihyun handed the shirts to Shownu, who took them and observed them carefully.

“Wow,” Shownu muttered. “Very colorful and soft.”

“They’re designed to help keep you warm in the winter season,” Kihyun explained. “I didn’t know what your size was, so I just guessed.”

Shownu stood up and removed his shirt, exposing his toned muscles to Kihyun once more, as the brunette felt a tightness grow in his lower body, similar to the tightness he felt after his dream a few nights prior. The raven haired man tried on the shirt, finding that it fit his toned body perfectly. “How does it look?” Shownu wondered.

“Really good,” Kihyun confirmed. “You look very nice in it.”

Shownu smiled. “Thank you for the gift, I appreciate the thought,” he said before pointing to another item. “What are those?”

“These are called flashlights, they can give you light in the darkness; I figured you could use them in case of an emergency or if the fire ever goes out at night,” Kihyun explained as he demonstrated what the flashlight could do.

“Wow, so amazing,” Shownu replied, entranced by what Kihyun had shown him. Kihyun smiled and laughed quietly at Shownu’s innocent interaction with the flashlight as the two looked at one another, before Shownu set it down and said “I should head out and get dinner for us, it’ll be getting dark soon.”

“Alright, be careful out there,” Kihyun requested.

Shownu grinned. “Don’t worry, I am always careful,” he promised.

After a bit, Shownu returned to the cabin, holding up two large fish. “Whoa, hooked some good ones,” Kihyun commented as Shownu threw them into a heated pan that Kihyun had set over the fire.

“What is that you are turning the fish over with?” Shownu wondered, watching Kihyun cook.

“This is a spatula,” Kihyun said as he continued stirring the fish around the pan.

“Spatula,” Shownu slowly repeated. He watched Kihyun had chopped up mushrooms and green onions to the pan after the fish had cooked for a few minutes. “You like to cook?”

“Oh yeah, it’s really calming,” Kihyun confirmed. “Sometimes I just wish I had someone to cook for besides myself.”

“I’m here, I like how you cook,” Shownu replied.

“Thank you, I appreciate you saying that,” Kihyun said before placing the fish and vegetables into two bowls.

As they ate, Shownu stated “Tomorrow, I’d like to show you another favorite place of mine in the forest, it’s where I like to find a special treat during the winter.”

“Okay, that sounds fun,” Kihyun agreed.

After dinner, Kihyun knew that it was soon going to be time for bed. As he climbed into Shownu’s bed, Kihyun heard him say “It looks like it’s going to snow tonight.”

Kihyun paused, remembering that Shownu had said the same thing in his dream. The brunette’s heart pounded as he saw Shownu glancing outside at the night sky. “How do you know that?” Kihyun wondered.

“I can sense it, and the temperature is still dropping,” Shownu explained.

“Do we have enough wood to stay warm tonight?” Kihyun inquired.

Shownu smiled over at Kihyun. “Don’t worry, I won’t let you get cold; I made sure to bring in enough wood,” Shownu promised, before placing another log onto the fire and settling down next to it.

Kihyun bit his lip, before nervously asking “Shownu, it’s going to be freezing tonight, why don’t we both share your bed? I don’t want you to get cold.”

“Thank you for your generosity and concern Kihyun, but I’ll be fine, it’s nice and warm here by the fire,” Shownu declined. Truthfully, Shownu would’ve loved to have climbed into bed with Kihyun and pull him into a warm embrace for the night, but was still hesitant about whether Kihyun fully understood the consequences of being with him.

Kihyun felt his heart sink as he whispered “Oh, okay, I understand.” Laying down, Kihyun pulled the fur blanket up around him as he tried to bury himself into slumber.

The next morning, Kihyun awoke and saw Shownu washing his face with warm water in a large, wooden bowl. Kihyun silently stared at the water that dripped down his cheeks and succulent lips, slowly trickling down his neck and over his Adam’s apple. Kihyun let out a quiet moan as he felt a heat grow in his lower stomach. Turning to look at Kihyun, Shownu grinned and said “Good morning, did you rest well?”

“Yes, I slept alright,” Kihyun acknowledged as he got up out of bed.

“That’s good to hear,” Shownu replied. “I will get breakfast started, and then we will head out.”

“Sounds good,” Kihyun agreed.

“Is everything alright? You seem sad today,” Shownu noticed.

“I’m sorry, I just have a small headache,” Kihyun muttered.

“Maybe some food will help you feel better,” Shownu offered as he added another log to the fire.

After being served breakfast by Shownu, Kihyun did in fact begin to feel better. “Did it snow any last night?” Kihyun wondered.

“Yes, there is a light layer on the ground outside, the first snowfall is the most beautiful one in my opinion,” Shownu said, standing up and walking over to the window, pulling back the deer skin curtain to reveal the frosty, snow-covered land.

Kihyun gazed in wonder at the pure white landscape before him; trees dusted with fresh snow, a little bit of grass struggling to peak through the flakes, and the river looking bluer than ever against the whiteness surrounding it. He quickly reached over and grabbed his camera from his duffel bag, as he began to snap pictures. “Absolutely beautiful,” Kihyun muttered.

Shownu smiled at Kihyun as he watched the brunette Korean take pictures of the snow and look at it in wonderment. “Does it not snow where you live?” Shownu inquired.

“Oh yes, it snows there, but it doesn’t look as pretty as this,” Kihyun confessed. “Where I live, snow is just pushed to the side and falls on streets and cars and buildings, here the snow stays mostly untouched, it’s so nice, I could just look at it all day.”

“I’m glad you enjoy the snow,” Shownu happily said. “If you want to see something really beautiful, let me take you out and show you other areas around the forest that are even better.”

After getting dressed in proper attire, Shownu and Kihyun left the cabin, taking in the grey skies spitting out snowflakes at a gentle pace. “Where are you taking me to?” Kihyun asked as he and Shownu trekked through the woods.

“If I told you, it would ruin the surprise,” Shownu replied. As they walked, Kihyun accidentally stepped onto a hidden patch of ice and yelped as he began to fall. Before he could hit the ground, he felt Shownu catch him, holding onto him tightly. Kihyun looked up Shownu as his heart pounded quickly in his chest, partially from the shock of almost falling, and partially because he was up against Shownu. “Are you alright?”

“Yes, I’m sorry about that,” Kihyun mumbled as he stood back up. “Thank you for catching me.”

“It’s not your fault, ice is very unstable, even I still fall on ice occasionally,” Shownu said, patting Kihyun’s back in an attempt to cheer him up as the brunette smiled at him. “C’mon, we’re getting close.” Shownu led Kihyun up a hill, to a clump of snow dusted bushes. “These are wild berries that are best enjoyed in the winter; I have them as a treat, and thought we could eat some tonight.”

“They do look really good,” Kihyun admitted. He picked a couple of the red and blue hued berries, brushing off some of the snow before trying them. “Wow, I love them.” Shownu grinned before eating a couple of berries himself. The two began picking berries off the hedges, filling the deep pockets of their coats with the fruit. “Have you ever made anything with these berries, or do you just eat them as they are?” Kihyun wondered.

“Usually just as they are, what do you make with them?” Shownu wondered.

“You can make a jam or maybe some kind of –” Kihyun started before yelled in surprise, caused by accidentally stepping on another patch of ice and slipping backwards, falling down the steep hill, into frigid river below. Cold water surrounded the brunette as Kihyun resurfaced and screamed “Shownu!” He then went under again, as the river began carrying the Korean farther away from Shownu. Kihyun coughed and spurted out water as he was forcibly around by the piercing river. The brunette felt himself be dragged under the water once more, his lungs burning as the ice water started filling his lungs. “Shownu!” Kihyun frantically called in fear as he gasped for air. Shownu however was bolting towards the river, eyes wide as he tried to reach Kihyun before it was too late. Finally, the river slowed down to a much gentler flow, but Kihyun was too cold to move towards the snowy bank. Kihyun struggled to even keep his eyes open at this point, feeling his eyelids begin to freeze over. Forcing his eyes open, Kihyun could see Shownu running towards him, and desperately tried to reach out his arm for Shownu to take, but instead felt his eyes close as he began to sink below the dark surface.

When Kihyun opened his eyes again, he found that he was no longer in the river, but being held against Shownu’s chest as the raven haired man quickly moved through the woods, wanting to get him somewhere warm as soon as possible. With all his energy, Kihyun tried to utter Shownu’s name, but could barely even move his lips. Shownu noticed he was trying to say something, but pleaded “Please Kihyun, save your strength, I will make you better, I promise.” Kihyun allowed himself to pass out again as the winter wind whipped past his freezing body.

Once Shownu got them back to the cabin, he immediately placed Kihyun into the large wooden basin he used to bathe in, before quickly adding more wood to the dying fire. Shownu then rushed about, beginning to fill the large pot over the fire with as much snow as he could gather. Kihyun lie curled up in the fetal position in the basin, shivering violently. “Sh-Sh-Shownu,” he chattered quietly.

“Don’t worry Kihyun, I’m getting water warmed up for you,” Shownu replied before stepping over to the brunette. “I need to get this coat off you so the water can get to your skin faster.” Shownu knelt down and began to carefully remove the coat from Kihyun’s body, noticing that the brunette’s skin was beginning to show a bluish hue. Shownu felt the water over the fire, but it wasn’t warm enough yet. Looking at the state Kihyun was in, Shownu unbuttoned his coat, picked Kihyun up and held him close to his torso, rubbing his hands up and down Kihyun’s body, feeling Kihyun tremble against him. “Body heat should help until the water is ready,” he whispered to the Korean, who groaned in acknowledgement. Kihyun rested his cold cheek against Shownu before burying his face in his warm neck, quietly moaning again as he not only felt feeling return to his face, but also took in Shownu’s comforting scent. “Everything’s gonna be okay,” Shownu whispered, as he stroked Kihyun’s bangs. “I’ll make you better, I promise.” After a few minutes, Shownu placed Kihyun back in the basin before feeling the water again. It was at a good hot temperature, but not hot enough to burn Kihyun. Shownu grabbed a bowl and filled it before slowly pouring the warm water onto Kihyun’s body, listening to the brunette gasp at the sudden warmth. Shownu continued pouring the warm water onto Kihyun until the brunette could move once again. “How do you feel? Is it getting better?” Shownu wondered, resting his hand on Kihyun’s cheek.

“Yes, thank you Shownu, you, you saved me,” Kihyun muttered as the two looked at one another.

“I’m so sorry Kihyun, it’s my fault that you fell, I shouldn’t have taken you up on the hill when it was slippery,” Shownu apologized, lowering his eyes in shame. “Please forgive me, I never wanted this to happen to you.”

Kihyun placed his hands on Shownu’s face and whispered “Please don’t blame yourself, this was in no way your fault, I should’ve been more careful; if it wasn’t for you, I’d be dead right now.”

“I just wish I could’ve kept you safe,” Shownu muttered. Kihyun could see tears glistening in the man’s eyes by the light of the fire, and in that moment, Kihyun didn’t know if it was the adrenaline from narrowly escaping death, or his growing feelings for Shownu talking, all Kihyun knew at that moment was he wanted him. Shownu gently moved his thumb across Kihyun’s bottom lip. “Your lips are still a little blue, maybe I should –” he started before stopping as Kihyun leaned forward and pressed his mouth to Shownu’s, catching Shownu off-guard. “Wait, Kihyun wait,” he said, gently gripping Kihyun’s shoulders. “Are you sure this is what you want? Are you sure _I’m_ the one you want? I mean, you don’t even know of the burden of choosing someone like –”

Kihyun slid his hands through Shownu’s hair and kissed him. “Shownu, I don’t care what the consequences are, I’m willing to accept them, I just want to be with you, please Shownu, please,” he begged quietly, wrapping his arms around Shownu’s neck. With that said, Shownu wasted no time; he picked up Kihyun, who slid his legs around the raven haired man’s waist as Shownu began tearing the soaking wet shirt off of Kihyun’s body, allowing his fingertips to trail along his now warm skin. Tossing Kihyun’s shirt down, Shownu carried the brunette over to his bed, laying him down as he climbed on top of him, kissing at Kihyun’s neck, ever so often biting the skin, earning moans from the brunette. Shownu then moved to pull off Kihyun’s pants, throwing the damp clothing aside, as he lightly kissed up Kihyun’s legs, while his fingers grazed along his thighs. Kihyun moaned before opening his eyes to watch Shownu yank off his own shirt, revealing his perfect body to Kihyun once more, crawling back on top of him as their lips met again. Kihyun slid his hands up and down Shownu’s back, feeling his large, tight muscles against his touch. As Shownu kissed and bit Kihyun’s neck, the brunette heard his lover almost begin to growl in an animal-like way, only making him crave Shownu more. With one hand, Shownu began to unfasten his pants, before Kihyun pushed them off with his feet, and wrapped his legs around Shownu’s waist again. Kihyun gasped as he felt Shownu enter him, realizing just how endowed he really was. Shownu moved in and out of Kihyun slowly at first before moving faster as he lowly growled and nipped at Kihyun’s neck and earlobe. “Shownu, oh my god, fuck yes, oh Shownu,” Kihyun moaned, digging his fingernails into Shownu’s back, earning another growl from him.

Kihyun arched his body and threw back his head as the ecstasy took ahold of him. Shownu pushed deep into Kihyun, forcing another gasp from the brunette as he sucked in air, his body momentarily frozen in an attempt to prolong the pleasurable feeling. When Kihyun finally exhaled and relaxed his body, Shownu slid out of him, as he pressed a kiss to Kihyun’s lips, feeling his lover hold his face gently and bite at his lower lip. Shownu then let his tongue travel down Kihyun’s throat, before sinking his teeth into Kihyun’s right shoulder as a growl rumbled in his throat. Kihyun moaned again, raking his fingers through Shownu’s black hair before the larger man moved to lie down next to him as they both turned to look at one another in the soft glow of the nearby fireplace. Neither one said a word, just lie there silently staring at the other, smiling. Shownu reached over and touched Kihyun’s face, stroking his cheek gently before he uttered “I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

“No, of course not, I loved it,” Kihyun replied, moving closer to Shownu.

The raven haired man lightly danced his fingertips around Kihyun’s skin, taking note of the dips and curves of his body, and how beautiful he truly was. Placing his hand in the middle of Kihyun’s back, Shownu pulled him closer, burying his face in Kihyun’s neck as he kissed the sensitive flesh and whispered “You are perfect in every way.”

Shownu felt Kihyun’s throat vibrate against his lips as the brunette let out a quiet moan. Raising his head to look at Kihyun again, Kihyun muttered as he pressed their foreheads together, “You are the one who is perfect.” Shownu wrapped Kihyun in a tight embrace and held him close as the two slowly drifted to sleep in the silent stillness of the cabin, while the fire crackled nearby, and the snow continued falling outside.

The next morning, Kihyun sighed as he opened his eyes, before noticing that he was still naked in Shownu’s bed. He looked around for the raven haired man, but found Shownu was gone. Kihyun stretched and groaned at the sudden pain that shot through his right shoulder. Craning his neck to look down, Kihyun saw the large bite mark on the front of his shoulder, and thought back to the previous evening as he grinned and touched the mark. He had no idea that Shownu was the biting type, but actually in a way liked that. As he continued to feel the teeth imprints on his skin, Kihyun began to realize that the bite mark didn’t feel like a normal bite mark, it felt almost, not human. Before he could think on it further, the door to the cabin opened up and in walked Shownu, carrying a deer and his bow. The two looked at one another and smiled. “What’s that, breakfast?” Kihyun wondered as he stood up, slipped on a pair of boxers, and grabbed one of Shownu’s flannel shirts that was hanging on one of the bedposts. Kihyun slid the shirt on, taking note of how big the garment was on him, compared to Shownu; the shirt fell down on him far enough to almost completely cover his boxer shorts.

“It’s not just breakfast,” Shownu said. “It’s our dinner as well. I didn’t want to have to leave the cabin again today, so I made sure to get everything this morning, so I could spend more time inside with you.” Going over to Kihyun, Shownu gently grabbed the brunette’s chin and kissed his lips once more.

“I like the sound of that,” Kihyun agreed, a quiet laugh in his throat. As Shownu moved to begin cooking, Kihyun took a seat at the table and watched him. “Did it snow anymore last night?”

“Oh yes, a lot of snow fell, when I was out earlier, the snow came up to my shins, and it’s just going to keep snowing as winter begins to fully settle in,” Shownu explained.

“I’ll have to be careful when I head back to the main trail tomorrow,” Kihyun said.

After breakfast, Kihyun quietly began cleaning up the eating area while Shownu hacked up the rest of the deer for them to have later that evening. When he had finished, Shownu walked up behind Kihyun and started lightly kissing his neck. The brunette Korean dropped the plate he was washing back into the bowl of warm water, and reached a hand back to run through Shownu’s raven hair. Going a step further, Shownu gradually slipped down some of the flannel shirt from around Kihyun’s right shoulder as his lips traveled down Kihyun’s warm skin, his tongue running across the bite mark he’d imprinted on his lover’s flesh. Kihyun moaned as he felt Shownu nip at his neck once more. Turning to face Shownu, Kihyun slid his arms around the raven haired man’s neck, before jumping up to wrap his legs around Shownu’s waist as his lover took ahold of his thighs. Carrying the smaller man over to the bed, Shownu gently laid Kihyun down on the furs, feeling Kihyun’s hands on his face as the two kissed. Kihyun felt Shownu’s hands move over his skin as he started to take off the shirt, before he gasped “Stop, Shownu, wait a second.”

Immediately, Shownu raised his head and looked at Kihyun. “What is it? Am I hurting you?” he nervously asked.

“No, no it’s not that,” Kihyun said. “It’s just, you take such good care of me all the time and put me first, let me take care of you tonight first, let me make you feel as special as you make me feel.” Shownu smiled before straightening as Kihyun sat up on the bed. Leaning forward, Kihyun pushed off Shownu’s shirt, resulting in him being eye level with Shownu’s marbled abs. The brunette lightly moved his fingertips along each of the muscles, brushing his lips across each of them as well, while discretely unfastening Shownu’s pants. An ecstatic shiver shot up through Kihyun as Shownu’s pants dropped to the ground and he saw the raven haired man’s member again, recalling the pleasure it had brought him the night before. Kihyun slowly dragged his tongue along the length, earning a low moan from Shownu before taking a little of his lover in his mouth. Knowing the size of Shownu, Kihyun knew there would be no way he could fit the whole length in his mouth, but wanted to do the best he could. Suddenly, Kihyun pulled his lips off of Shownu and panted “Here, come lay down on the bed.”

The raven haired man complied with Kihyun’s wishes and lie down on his bed as Kihyun moved in between Shownu’s legs and continued pleasuring his lover orally, adding another few inches in his mouth every few minutes. Kihyun placed his hands on Shownu’s legs, feeling his powerful thigh muscles against him as he moved his tongue around Shownu’s length again. Kihyun felt Shownu’s body begin to shake as he orgasmed into his mouth, while Kihyun drank down every drop. Sitting up, the brunette wiped his mouth as he took in a few breaths, watching Shownu catch his breath as well. Kihyun slipped his boxers down his legs, tossing them off the side of the bed before straddling Shownu, bending down to kiss his raven haired lover, holding his head gently in his hands. Shownu slid his fingers up Kihyun’s thighs and underneath his shirt, scraping his nails over Kihyun’s milky flesh as he felt the brunette moan and kiss at his neck. Pulling back slightly to take in a breath, Kihyun sat up on his knees and forced off his shirt, running his fingertips down Shownu’s pectoral muscles as he moved to hover over Shownu’s member before lowering himself onto his lover slowly, gasping quietly as he felt the appendage move deeper inside him. Kihyun threw his head back and moaned, rocking back and forth against Shownu’s pelvis. Before Kihyun could reach a full orgasmic state, he felt Shownu’s hands on his waist as he was immediately flipped onto his back on the bed, as Shownu was now hovering above him. It almost shocked Kihyun by how fast Shownu had changed their positions. “W-what –” Kihyun panted, before Shownu kissed his lips lovingly.

“I want to take care of you now,” Shownu whispered, nipping at Kihyun’s ear.

Kihyun felt Shownu begin to kiss down his torso and stomach as the raven haired man licked and bit at his hips, before settling in between Kihyun’s legs, placing them over his shoulders. The brunette Korean gasped and arched his body almost immediately, as Shownu was able to take all of him into his mouth at once, and since he was still aching from not releasing earlier, Kihyun was taken to cloud nine almost suddenly. Reaching down, Kihyun gripped Shownu’s hair in one hand and a pillow in the other as he gyrated his pelvis and moaned “Shownu, oh god, yes, oh Shownu.” Kihyun felt Shownu’s tongue snake all around his member as the raven haired man let a low growl rumble in his throat. Kihyun let out a high pitched cry as he arched his back as much as he could and curled his toes, gripping the fur underneath him as he orgasmed into Shownu’s mouth, feeling his lover lick him clean.

As Kihyun lie there and caught his breath, he felt Shownu kiss at his inner thighs before lowering his legs back down to the bed. Looking at Shownu, Kihyun saw the animalistic hunger in his eyes as Shownu crawled up his body to kiss his lips fervently once more. Kihyun wrapped his arms around Shownu, holding him close, digging his nails into Shownu’s back as the raven haired man growled in his ear and bit and sucked at his neck. Shownu took Kihyun’s legs and slid them around his waist as he entered Kihyun’s body once more, earning another treasured moan from the brunette. “Kiki, my Kiki,” Shownu muttered before taking one of Kihyun’s hands and pressing it against the furs on the bed, interlacing their fingers together tightly. With his other hand, Shownu pressed it against the headboard of the bed as he thrust into Kihyun again and again. The brunette was now continuously moaning, having never had his body pushed to this degree before by any of his previous lovers, but by far, Shownu was the best he’d ever had. Gripping Kihyun’s hand tightly, Shownu pushed as deep as he could into Kihyun, releasing into him as both men panted for breath. Shownu looked down at Kihyun as the brunette brushed his sweaty raven hair out of Shownu’s eyes, before resting his hand against his lover’s cheek. Shownu nudged his face against Kihyun’s palm before lying down next to him. Like the night before, the two just lie in bed looking at one another silently. “Stay with me during the winter season,” Shownu whispered, trailing his fingers along the curve of Kihyun’s waist. “During the winter, the snow gets very thick; I don’t want you to have to trek back and forth like that. It gets lonely here during the colder months, and I really do not want to spend the winter away from you, please Kihyun?”

A smile formed across the brunette’s lips as he replied “I would love nothing more than to stay here with you; I just need to okay it with work, so I’ll need a few days to gather some more things and get things situated.”

Shownu leaned forward and kissed Kihyun, brushing his thumb across Kihyun’s cheek. “I wish you never had to leave, but I understand your reasons,” he said. Shownu pulled Kihyun into his embrace and kissed at his neck before allowing his mouth to travel to Kihyun’s shoulder blade as he gently bit the soft flesh, earning a groan from the brunette, as Kihyun lie on his stomach. Shownu continued kissing and biting at his lover’s skin, the tip of his tongue dipping up and down along Kihyun’s spine. Kihyun moaned quietly as Shownu nudged his face against the back of Kihyun’s neck, nibbling the warm skin with his surprisingly sharp teeth.

Later, Shownu and Kihyun were still lying in bed, listening to the wind howl outside, and snow pelt the roof of the cabin, but they were warm inside. Kihyun had his back pressed against Shownu’s torso, while Shownu had an arm wrapped protectively around Kihyun; Kihyun had his head lying on Shownu’s outstretched arm as they interlaced one of their hands again, taking note of the size difference between the two. “How long have you lived out here?” Kihyun inquired.

“All my life, my family has lived on this land for many generations,” Shownu informed. “We lived with other families in a small community, sadly they’re all gone now.”

“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that; it would’ve been interesting to have met them,” Kihyun muttered, earning a grin from Shownu.

“They would’ve loved you,” Shownu promised, pressing a kiss to Kihyun’s neck. “But not as much as I love you.”

“You love me?” Kihyun repeated craning his head to look back at Shownu.

“Yes, I love you Kihyun, I want no one but you, only you. Your soul is very special,” Shownu replied. “Do you love me?”

The brunette smiled as he quietly replied “Yes, I love you Shownu, I love you very much.”

The two kissed before Kihyun turned to face Shownu, kissing him again, feeling Shownu stroke his back gently. Glancing outside, Shownu saw that it was growing dark outside. “I’m gonna start on dinner.” He kissed Kihyun’s cheek before pulling away from the warmth of the bed and slid his pants on as he began preparing the rest of the deer meat for their dinner. Kihyun turned his head to watch the shirtless raven haired man cook their dinner, taking note of the red scratch marks on his back, curtesy of Kihyun. Feeling his own shoulder, Kihyun let his fingertips brush across the swollen bite marks from the night before, but even though the mark was red, it wasn’t sore anymore. When the meat was cooked, Kihyun climbed out of bed and slid into his boxer shorts again, before slipping on a shirt as he sat down at the table across from Shownu. The two ate their meal silently before Shownu said “Tomorrow, we might have to start heading back to the trail in the morning if the snow gets any thicker and in case there’s ice; I don’t want another accident like yesterday to happen again.”

“Okay, the sooner I get back home, the sooner I can return here,” Kihyun reminded, earning a smile from his lover. After dinner, with only the glow of the fireplace as their source of light, Shownu and Kihyun made their way back over to the bed, climbing in and lying down close to one another. Kihyun ran his fingers up and down Shownu’s arm, feeling his lover’s muscles underneath his airy touch, before trailing his hand up Shownu’s collarbone, to finally rest against his cheek. “There’s just something about you,” he whispered, gazing into Shownu’s eyes. The raven haired man smiled back at him, quietly kissing his lips as they wrapped themselves in one another’s embrace for the night.

The next morning, Kihyun awoke alone in bed again, but heard chopping sounds coming from outside and knew Shownu had to be getting more wood for their fire. Sitting up, he stretched his sore body before climbing out of bed to start preparing breakfast. Standing next to the bed, Kihyun noticed the headboard of Shownu’s bed and the scratch marks embedded in the wood. The strangest part however, was not just how deep the marks were, but how long and animal-like they appeared; they didn’t look like a human had made them at all. Maybe it was just a moment of passion, Kihyun figured, trying to make sense of it, but also thinking that he’d seen marks like that somewhere before, and recently too. Once their breakfast had been eaten, Kihyun packed up his things before he and Shownu began the walk back to the main trail. Shownu hadn’t lied when he said that the snow had gotten deeper; it had also hardened overnight with an icy layer, making it that much harder to walk through. Kihyun held Shownu’s hand as they walked so he could keep his balance and not slip and fall again. With the snow being as it was, it took them a little longer to reach the log bridge, which now was covered in almost a foot of snow. “Great, just wonderful,” Kihyun groaned.

“The underside of the log has not frozen over and has barely any snow on it,” Shownu noticed. Before Kihyun could say anything, Shownu picked up the end of the log and turned it so the dryer surface was now face up. “There you go.”

Kihyun’s mouth was wide open, but he covered it as he laughed quietly. “You never cease to amaze me,” he muttered. Leaning forward, the brunette kissed his lover, promising “I’ll be back in a few days.”

“Be safe,” Shownu requested, holding Kihyun close. “I love you.”

“I will be, I love you too,” Kihyun replied. They kissed once more, before Kihyun crossed the log bridge and made his way back to the entrance of the park.

Once he was back in Korea, Kihyun wasted no time packing together winter attire and other items he might need during his extended stay with Shownu. Since he had seniority at the magazine, Kihyun was allowed to take weeks or even months staying on location to photograph things, so he sat down with his laptop and began typing out his statement to his editor, explaining in an extremely discrete way how he would be spending the winter in the Great Bear Rainforest, all while keeping Shownu a secret. As he typed, there was a knock on his door before it opened up and in walked Minhyuk. “Hey Kihyun, how was your trip? Did anything exciting happen?” the blonde Korean wondered, sitting down on the couch next to Kihyun.

“You could say that,” Kihyun replied, not breaking concentration from his screen.

“Ooh, did you and lumberjack man finally hook up?” Minhyuk curiously inquired. “What happened with you two?”

“To simply put it –” Kihyun started.

“No, not simply, I want all of the details,” Minhyuk interrupted, grabbing Kihyun’s laptop, closing the lid, and setting it down on the table. “I’m in between lovers right now, and no not in that way, I have got to hear about some sex or I’ll go crazy.”

Kihyun sighed but obliged Minhyuk; he recounted how he almost died of hypothermia after falling into the river, how Shownu saved them and they ended up having sex, and how Shownu wanted Kihyun to spend the winter with him. “You think I’m crazy for wanting to do this?” Kihyun inquired.

“Hey man, for the past few weeks, you’ve been acting a little different whenever this Shownu guy gets mentioned, so I think you should just do what you want,” Minhyuk responded. “So tell me, does he have any fetishes or is he into anything, I mean besides you?”

Kihyun rolled his eyes before commenting “He likes to bite.”

“Ooh, I like a man with some bite,” Minhyuk approved.

“The only thing is, his bites are strange; they’re not like anything I’ve ever seen before,” Kihyun said. Pulling his shirt down some, Kihyun exposed his right shoulder, showing Minhyuk the odd bite mark that Shownu had put on him.

“Whoa, that man has got some powerful teeth, that’s daddy as fuck right there,” Minhyuk replied.

“I mean, he was almost like an animal when we had sex, yet he was so gentle at the same time,” Kihyun informed. “He told me that he loved me.”

“Whoa, he’s already pulled out the ‘L’ word? Dude that’s pretty quick,” Minhyuk noted.

“It’s okay, I said it back,” Kihyun revealed.

Minhyuk’s jaw dropped. “You said it back? You, the guy who’s last relationship didn’t even make it to the ‘let’s go down on each other’ stage?” he asked.

“I know, I know it’s strange, but there’s just something about Shownu that, I don’t know, he’s just different from everyone else, and I love that about him, I can’t explain it,” Kihyun stammered, feeling his cheeks blush at the thought of his lover.

“Well good luck to you and your lumberjack prince, if I’m half as lucky as you, maybe I’ll get me a slice of something like that one day,” Minhyuk responded. “I’m off to meet Hyungwon for an after work drink, you wanna join us?”

“Thanks, but I want to go ahead and get things arranged here so I can get back to Shownu as soon as possible,” Kihyun declined.

“I hear ya, have fun Kihyun, call us when you get back,” Minhyuk requested before he exited the apartment.

Curiously, Kihyun turned on his TV and flipped to the Weather Channel, noticing that the forecast for the area around the Great Bear Rainforest called for eight inches of snow by the end of the week. Kihyun sighed, worried about Shownu. “It’s okay, he’s done this all his life, he’s used to it, he’ll be fine,” Kihyun muttered to himself, trying to calm his nerves as he watched the pixel snow move across the map of southern Canada. Quickly, Kihyun continued to pack his things into two suitcases, before purchasing his plane ticket, this time making it only one way, and making sure it was leaving tomorrow.

The following morning, for the third time that month, Kihyun boarded a plane for Canada. The adrenaline he felt kept him awake during the entire duration of the plane ride, and as soon as it touched down, Kihyun had grabbed his stuff and rushed for the next shuttle bus to the park. Once he reached the park entrance, Kihyun carried his suitcases down the trail quickly before a park worker noticed what he was doing. After crossing the ‘Do Not Enter’ sign, Kihyun found the snow to be a little thicker as he continued trekking towards the log bridge. Reaching the log, Kihyun carefully crossed, walking sideways with a suitcase on each side of him. Finally reaching the opposite side of the river, Kihyun retrieved the wooden bear whistle from his pocket and blew into it continuously, remembering Shownu’s pleas for him to wait right there, instead of wandering into the forest alone; and now that he had met that creepy Changkyun guy, Kihyun didn’t want to risk it. After a few minutes, Kihyun sat down on one of his suitcases as he continued blowing the whistle, listening to the high pitched call emit from it. When a few more minutes had passed, Kihyun heard rustling coming from nearby, and for a moment felt nervous that it was Changkyun again, but felt his heart relax when he saw Shownu emerge from the trees and hurry up to him. Shownu immediately wrapped his arms around Kihyun and held him tightly as Kihyun mirrored the raven haired man’s actions. “I missed you,” Shownu whispered, pressing a gentle kiss to Kihyun’s lips.

“I missed you too, but I’m back for the winter,” Kihyun promised as he grabbed a suitcase.

“Let’s hurry and get back to the cabin, it could start snowing again any minute,” Shownu suggested as he took the other suitcase and led Kihyun down the trail to his cabin. “I made you something while you were away.”

“What is it?” Kihyun wondered.

“It’s inside, take a look,” Shownu said as he opened the cabin door for Kihyun. Stepping inside, Kihyun noticed that there was a new object in the cabin, next to the bed was a large wooden chest. “It’s for you to keep your things in.”

“Thank you, I love it,” Kihyun thanked, placing a kiss on Shownu’s cheek. “I can’t wait to unpack everything into it.”

“You unpack, I will go get dinner for us,” Shownu replied, grabbing his bow and quiver before leaving the cabin.

Kihyun smiled as he began setting his things inside the chest, touched by Shownu’s gift and gesture. Once Shownu had returned with their dinner, the two prepared the meat together before retiring to bed for the night. “It’s just you and me for three months,” Kihyun whispered to Shownu, who was currently hovering above him. “Do you think you’ll be sick of me by spring?”

Shownu smirked before leaning down to kiss the brunette’s lips. “Of course not, I wish it was just you and me always,” he responded, sliding his fingers up underneath Kihyun’s shirt, pulling the garment off slowly before tossing it aside while Kihyun unbuttoned the flannel shirt that Shownu was wearing and raked his fingers up and down his lover’s abs, feeling the tight muscles under his delicate touch. Shownu sat up and threw off the shirt, leaving both of their torsos exposed. Kihyun closed his eyes and moaned quietly as Shownu began his passionate assault on the brunette’s body, licking, biting, and kissing him all over, while Kihyun’s moans filled the still cabin air.

Early the next morning, Kihyun awoke with a groan as he pulled the fur blanket around him tighter. Moving his leg, Kihyun realized that Shownu was still lying next to him, which struck Kihyun as odd, usually as soon as the sun was up, Shownu was out looking for meat for their breakfast. Rolling over, Kihyun found that Shownu’s back was to him, and scooted closer to his lover, sweetly pressing light kisses against his warm skin. “Tired this morning?” Kihyun jokingly asked as he rested his head against Shownu’s shoulder. When the raven haired man didn’t reply, Kihyun propped himself up on an elbow and gently shook him. “Shownu?” Instead of a verbal response, Shownu let out a terrible sounding, deep lung cough. “Oh my god, Shownu, are you okay?” Kihyun inquired, now sitting up completely. “What happened?”

“I’m sorry, I am just feeling ill,” Shownu said in a raspy voice, letting out another hearty cough.

“I need to go get you some medicine,” Kihyun stated, jumping out of bed and immediately dressing. “I’ll head to town and get some, I’m familiar with how to get back and forth now, so I know I won’t get lost.”

“No, Kihyun please,” Shownu begged in a barely audible voice. “I don’t want something to happen to you; there is an old shaman who lives on the far mountain, I get my medicines from him. Just start a fire outside and send out three black clouds of smoke, he’ll come right down.”

“Shownu, it would take him at least a day to travel here from the mountain, if I leave now, I can maybe make it back by sundown,” Kihyun figured.

“Then please, take your whistle,” Shownu begged, pressing the wooden bear into Kihyun’s hands. “Please, if anything happens, please signal for me.”

“But you are sick,” Kihyun reminded.

“I don’t care, I want to protect you no matter what, please Kihyun,” Shownu pleaded.

“Okay, okay, I’ll blow it if I need you,” Kihyun promised. He knelt down next to the bed and took Shownu’s face in his hands as they pressed their foreheads together. “I’ll be back soon, I’ll make you better, I love you.” Before heading out, Kihyun grabbed one of the sharpened goose bone knives that Shownu had whittled, just in case.

Setting off into the forest, Kihyun was determined to help Shownu, glad that he had arrived back to the woods when he did. If he had waited another day to come, Kihyun didn’t want to think about what state Shownu might have been in at this point. Continuing his long walk through the powdery snow, Kihyun was about halfway there, when he paused, hearing some branches snap and snow crunch from two different directions behind him. Turning around, Kihyun saw nothing, but could still hear the sounds. He nervously drew the knife, gripping it in both shaky hands, praying it was just a deer or some rabbits. Kihyun’s heart pounded as two men, wearing clothing that similarly matched Changkyun’s, emerged from behind the trees on either side of Kihyun, one with silver hair, another with dark brunette hair. They glared at him as evil smiles appeared across both of their mouths, and they began to circle Kihyun slowly. “Well, well, so you are the one Changkyun told us to find,” the silver haired man said.

Kihyun’s eyes widened as he extended his arms out with the knife still firmly in his grasp. “It took us forever to find you, Shownu must’ve covered your scent well,” the dark brunette haired man added.

“Just please leave me alone, I have to get to town,” Kihyun requested.

The two men ignored Kihyun’s statement as they moved closer to him, seemingly unfazed by the goose bone knife. “It’s a shame Shownu sent you out on your own, it almost makes it too easy,” the silver haired man muttered before knocking the knife out of Kihyun’s hand, gripping his wrist tightly. The other man moved to grab Kihyun’s other arm but not before Kihyun managed by some miracle to reach into his pocket and yank out the wooden whistle, blowing into it ecstatically.

Kihyun only could blow it for a few seconds before the dark brunette haired man snatched the whistle and threw it amongst the trees, as he took Kihyun’s other wrist. “No, no let me go!” Kihyun screamed as the two started dragging him off. “No, Shownu! Shownu!” Kihyun screamed until his lungs began burning, filling with the cold Canadian air, as he tried to free himself from his captors.

Suddenly, the two men paused as they heard a low growl coming from behind them. All three of them turned to see a large black bear standing just a few feet away; Kihyun’s heart leapt into his throat. The bear let out a loud roar as the two men released Kihyun, who then backed up against a tree. To the brunette’s shock and wonderment, he watched as the two men charged towards the bear, and almost froze as he observed them shapeshift into silver and brown wolves. “What, what the?” Kihyun panted, trying to make sense of what he just saw, as the wolves began attacking the bear. The black bear roared and gnashed at the wolves, while two wolves bit and lunged at the bear. Kihyun watched as the bear struck one wolf in the face with its paw, sending it flying back with a yelp, while the other tried biting at the bear’s head. The bear knocked the wolf off of itself, slashing it across the side with its large, sharp claws. Standing up on its hind legs, the bear roared again as the two wolves hesitated a few moments, but then decided to retreat back into the trees. Returning to all four legs, the black bear turned to face Kihyun, who still had his back pressed firmly against the tree. He wanted to run away, but was just frozen in the moment with fear and amazement. Kihyun closed his eyes and trembled as the bear began walking over to him. The brunette Korean felt tears begin to slip down his cheeks as he could feel the bear’s breath on his face. However, the bear didn’t attack him, instead, it nudged its face against Kihyun, giving out a small sound. Opening his eyes slowly, Kihyun looked at the animal as it nudged him again before staring at Kihyun; the brunette felt his mouth drop open as he looked at the bear’s eyes and found something familiar about them. “Shownu?” he whispered in disbelief. The bear took a few steps back before collapsing onto the snowy ground, as Kihyun watched the bear begin to shrink until the fur began to disappear and the animal features vanished, and left behind the human Shownu that Kihyun recognized. Kihyun immediately went over to the unconscious man, noting the scratch and bite marks he had accumulated during his fight with the wolves. The brunette Korean held Shownu close for a moment before dragging him back to the cabin, still very confused by what he had just witnessed.

Once he had gotten Shownu back home, Kihyun helped the raven haired man into bed, covering him up with the furs and pressing a kiss to his forehead. It was almost dark and he knew he couldn’t make it to town and back, not wanting to risk anything else happening. With no other choice, Kihyun remembered what Shownu had said about there being a shaman who could help, and went outside, making a small fire with the hot coals from inside and a few logs they had stored up. Remembering that Shownu had told him to call the shaman using three black smoke clouds, Kihyun knew he had to hurry before the last of the sunlight left for the night. Grabbing a deerskin from inside the cabin, Kihyun covered the fire for a few seconds before yanking the deerskin away, sending a smoke cloud into the sky. He did this two more times before waiting for a response from the mountain, but nothing came. Kihyun sighed and went back into the cabin, where Shownu was still lying unconscious in bed, sweat beading all over his face. Taking a small rag, Kihyun dabbed the sweat from Shownu’s face, before finally breaking down in tears; partially from what he saw in the woods, and partially because Shownu was sick and Kihyun felt helpless and upset that there was almost nothing he could do to help his lover. A few moments later, there was a knock at the cabin door. “Who is it?” Kihyun asked.

“I received a signal that Shownu needs medicine,” an older man’s voice said.

Quickly, Kihyun opened the door and allowed the shaman to come inside. “Wow, that was faster than I thought,” he muttered to himself. “Please help him, he’s sick.”

“And just who might you be?” the shaman inquired as he sat next to the bed and pulled items from his satchel-like bag.

“I’m Kihyun, I’ve been seeing Shownu for the past few weeks,” the brunette Korean informed.

“No outsider is supposed to be in this part of the woods,” the shaman firmly said.

“I know, and but I was –” Kihyun began, wanting to explain his predicament.

“Don’t waste your breath, I know how you came to be here,” the shaman interrupted. “I saw it all happen.” He began to lightly press a green looking paste against Shownu’s cuts before mixing together some herbs and water.

“What do you mean you saw it all happen?” Kihyun questioned.

“How long as Shownu been sick?” the shaman asked, ignoring Kihyun’s question.

“He started getting sick this morning, he was coughing really badly,” Kihyun said.

Feeling Shownu’s forehead, the shaman realized the problem. “He hasn’t begun his hibernation yet, he’s just exhausted.”

“Hibernation? Does he do that while he’s in his bear form?” Kihyun wondered. The shaman looked at him. “Yes, I know that Shownu can change into a bear, I saw it happen today, but I also saw two men change into wolves. I don’t know what the fuck is going on in this forest that is allowing people to do that, but it’s very confusing and I don’t know what’s going on.”

“I guess that would be my doing,” the shaman stated before helping Shownu drink down an herbal remedy. “I made them like that almost four hundred years ago.”

“Wait, you’re telling me that Shownu is over four hundred years old?” Kihyun inquired.

“Technically speaking yes, however I stopped his aging process at the time of his death, twenty five years old,” the shaman informed. “He has like this for that long.”

“Can you please explain everything to me? Shownu has kept this all a big secret and would barely tell me anything,” Kihyun requested.

“Very well,” the shaman agreed. “Many, many years ago Shownu was the son of a tribe leader who was loved by all. He was an excellent hunter, craftsman, leader, and was supposed to take over when he turned twenty five years old. As in many tribal traditions, Shownu was also supposed to wed the daughter of another tribe leader, therefore binding the two tribes into one, in hopes of creating a peaceful future. A few weeks before they were to be married, Shownu and the girl met in person and instantly bonded, it was a wonderful sight. They seemed very happy together and everyone prayed that their marriage would bring prosperity to the land, however it only brought heartache. You see, the girl’s brother, Changkyun, he was a very disturbed boy, very intelligent, but extremely possessive and cruel. Changkyun loved his sister, and by that I mean he really loved his sister, almost incestually. He didn’t think any man could be a more superior match for his sister than himself, wanting to keep their bloodline pure, so when he saw that his sister had truly fallen for Shownu, it angered him greatly. Changkyun thought that if he couldn’t have his sister, then no one else could, so on the eve of the wedding, Changkyun, along with his two loyal friends, Jooheon and Wonho, they lured the girl out into the woods where Changkyun raped and strangled her to death. When Shownu discovered it was Changkyun who killed his betrothed, in a fit of rage he killed Jooheon and Wonho for their involvement before confronting Changkyun. During their fight, they both ended up falling off of a cliff, into a pond below to their deaths. In a vision, the gods told me to make an example out of the four boys who had died, so with the aid of the gods, their spirits were returned to their bodies, only there was a condition; they were no longer just human, the gods had decided to punish them for their anger and vengeance by forcing them to change into animals, and to be cursed to this land for a thousand years. The four of them can never leave the forest or the gods will take their spirits back; they also cannot be killed by anything other than one another. I was asked by the gods to watch over them and see if they would learn from their mistakes. For the first few years, they rarely used their human form, isolating themselves to opposite ends of the forest so they wouldn’t have to see one another, Shownu was alone, while Changkyun took Wonho and Jooheon into another area of the woods. As time passed, Shownu began to understand and cope with his punishment more, but wanted to keep his human side strong, so he became more comfortable in human form, able to build himself a home, and act like he did when he was alive. However, every winter, he would hibernate, as he had the instinct too, and only became a bear when he was threatened or needed food. Changkyun on the other hand, he and his friends became more feral, relying on their animal instincts and not their humanity to accomplish things. They have not seen me since I helped bring them back to life, but Shownu regularly sees me once a year for medicines, his humanity is returning, and I see that when I look at you.”

“What makes you say that?” Kihyun asked.

“Well you must be pretty special to Shownu if he is willing to set aside hibernation to spend time with you,” the shaman said. “He has also marked you as his mate.”

Kihyun saw the shaman point to his right shoulder, causing Kihyun to pull down his shirt a little, revealing the bite mark that had now set into his skin. “He did this to mark me?” Kihyun inquired.

“Yes, he marked you so that nothing would touch you; in a way, it’s like a marriage ring. With that mark, you also have his scent attached to you to drive away predators,” the shaman explained.

“You said that Shownu was supposed to marry the daughter of another tribe; why would he fall for me then? I’m a boy,” Kihyun wondered.

“Because you look similar to her, and even have a similar name,” the shaman stated. He reached into his bag and pulled out a deerskin; on it was a picture of what looked like Shownu and a girl. “This was painted for them as a wedding gift.”

Kihyun looked at the picture and felt his heart drop into his stomach. Even though it was an old picture, Kihyun could undoubtedly see that the girl did in fact look like him, just with longer hair. “What was her name?” Kihyun asked.

“Kiki,” the shaman said.

“That explains a lot,” Kihyun replied. “So you’re telling me that Shownu thinks I’m like some reincarnation of the girl he was supposed to marry?”

“Yes, but that also means that Changkyun could think the same thing. I strongly advise you to stay out of the woods alone, if Changkyun gets ahold of you, that anger will take over him again and he could do something drastic,” the shaman advised. “As for Shownu, he needs to sleep for a while to break his fever. Just make sure he drinks this herbal remedy once a day and he should be able to continue his non-hibernation for the winter.”

As the shaman stood up to leave, Kihyun stopped him. “Wait, does Shownu really love me, or does he love who he thinks I am?” he questioned.

“In a way both, you are his Kiki, but a new version of her. Who you are, is who she was, that’s why Shownu fell for you,” the shaman explained. “He would not have mated with you and protected you if he didn’t truly love you.”

The shaman left the cabin, leaving Kihyun to stand there in the silence alone. The brunette Korean added some more logs to the fire to keep it going for the night before sitting down at the table to take in all that he had heard. He looked over at Shownu who was still resting peacefully and walked over to sit down next to him. “You could’ve just told me,” Kihyun whispered as tears slipped down his cheeks. “I would’ve still loved you.” Kihyun leaned his head against Shownu’s chest as he cried quietly and stroked his fingers through his lover’s raven hair. Pressing a kiss to Shownu’s lips, Kihyun added “I love you, I love you Shownu.” The brunette lie down next to Shownu and cried himself to sleep as he wrapped his arms around Shownu’s body.

The next morning, Shownu coughed as he sat up, finding Kihyun at the fireplace mixing up an herbal remedy that the shaman had left him. “I suppose you need me to explain what you saw yesterday,” Shownu muttered shamefully.

“There’s no need, the shaman explained everything to me in great detail,” Kihyun replied, placing some of the hot drink into a cup before carrying it to Shownu. “I understand everything now.”

“Are you upset with me?” Shownu asked.

“At first yes, but then I calmed down and tried to think of things from your perspective and I realized that you had your reasons for hiding that from me,” Kihyun responded. “But I also see how much you seem to really love and care for me, and that’s more important than any of that other stuff, just please Shownu, no more secrets.”

“I promise,” Shownu whispered, pulling Kihyun into bed with him, placing kisses along Kihyun’s throat. “I love you Kihyun.”

“I love you too Shownu,” Kihyun echoed, smiling as he felt Shownu’s fingers snake up his back, under his shirt.

Later that afternoon, Kihyun was chopping up vegetables to make a soup for Shownu when there was a loud bang on the cabin door. Knowing it couldn’t be the shaman again, Kihyun was hesitant to open the door. “Get away from the door, quick,” Shownu instructed, as Kihyun ran over next to him.

Suddenly, the door was kicked in, as Jooheon, Wonho, and Changkyun entered. “Nice little place you’ve got set up here,” Changkyun sneered.

“Get out of here Changkyun, you’re not supposed to be anywhere near here, that’s our agreement,” Shownu argued, moving to stand up. Having been off his feet all day, Shownu’s legs wobbled a little, having to let Kihyun help him balance.

“Under normal circumstances I wouldn’t dream of coming near your little hovel, but you have something that I want, and I get what I want, I always have,” Changkyun said as he eyed Kihyun with a hungry look.

“No, I won’t let you hurt Kiki again,” Shownu denied, forcing Kihyun behind him.

“You won’t be able to do anything, you’re sick, not a very useful mate, is he Kiki?” Changkyun laughed.

“Don’t you dare speak to him, he has already chosen his mate,” Shownu snapped.

Kihyun pulled his shirt down to reveal Shownu’s bite mark on his shoulder, earning a growl from Changkyun. “He can always change his mind, and if not, I’ll change it for him,” Changkyun remarked as he lunged forward to grab Kihyun’s wrist, yanking him away from Shownu. Shownu tried to retaliate, but because of his weak state, was easily subdued by Jooheon and Wonho, being knocked to the ground as he heard Kihyun scream for him. The brunette was dragged through the snow by Changkyun, kicking and screaming the whole way, but that didn’t faze his captor one bit. Kihyun watched as he was taken to the cave where Changkyun, Jooheon, and Wonho resided. Changkyun tossed Kihyun towards the back of the cave as Jooheon tied him up. “We choose not to live in a house like Shownu, we’ve embraced the animal side more than he did,” Changkyun said. Kihyun remained silent as Changkyun knelt down in front of him and reached out to lightly touch his face, flinching as he felt his cold fingers against his skin. “You’re still so beautiful Kiki, even in boy form. I noticed that the first night you were in the woods. Remember that? You hit me on the face with a rock, that wasn’t a nice thing to do Kiki.”

Kihyun turned his face from Changkyun. “I’ve mated with Shownu, I’ve chosen him, I don’t want anyone else,” he muttered.

“Now don’t be like that Kiki; you will be much happier without Shownu in the way, I’ll make sure of that. He took you from me once, but I’ll be damned if he does it again. I’ll kill him before he touches you again,” Changkyun growled. Leaning down, Changkyun gripped Kihyun’s face in one hand and forced a kiss against his mouth, roughly biting his lower lip. “Now, let’s get his scent off of you, and replace it with mine.” Changkyun began to rip Kihyun’s clothes off of him, as the brunette Korean screamed again. Changkyun pressed his palm to Kihyun’s mouth shushing him harshly. “Don’t scream, you did that last time and it ruined the moment for me.”

Tears slipped down Kihyun’s face as he felt Changkyun’s hands on his skin. Just as Changkyun was moving to take off Kihyun’s pants, a loud roar was heard from outside the cave, causing both of them to pause. Kihyun’s heart beat faster, praying that it was Shownu; his eyes widened as he then saw Shownu stumble into the cave. “Don’t you touch him!” Shownu yelled as Changkyun stood up and faced him.

“Leave now and I promise as a gift to Kiki, I will let you keep your life,” Changkyun threatened.

“Shownu, Shownu please,” Kihyun called as he struggled to get his hands untied.

“Be quiet Kiki,” Changkyun snapped.

“It’s alright Kihyun, I’ll get you out of here,” Shownu promised. “I should’ve done this a long time ago, it would’ve saved us a lot of heartache. If you want Kiki as much as I do, then I challenge you for him, the winner will be his mate.”

“Shownu, no you’re too sick to fight,” Kihyun pleaded.

“I accept your challenge, and I look forward to having Kiki all to myself when this is all over with,” Changkyun replied. “Let’s step outside; Jooheon, Wonho, bring Kiki, I want him to witness who is the more dominant person.”

Wonho stepped over to Kihyun and untied his hands as he and Jooheon grabbed Kihyun’s arms and pulled him outside into the snow. Fresh flakes had begun to spit out across the forest as the sun was setting in the distance. Changkyun and Shownu began to circle one another as Changkyun shifted into a wolf and rushed at Shownu as the raven haired man quickly transformed into a bear, swiping at Changkyun as Changkyun bit at his arm. Shownu roared loudly as Changkyun jumped onto his back, ripping into his skin and fur, while Kihyun struggled against Jooheon and Wonho. He watched as Shownu roughly bit into one of Changkyun’s hind legs, earning a yelp from the wolf, before Changkyun growled and jumped up, latching his teeth to Shownu’s throat. “No, Shownu!” Kihyun screamed as the bear groaned in pain and blood began to seep from the wound. Kihyun forced himself away from Jooheon and Wonho, rushing over to help Shownu as the bear started falling to the ground. “Shownu, it’s okay, it’s okay,” he muttered, kneeling down next to the bear as he slowly began changing back to human form. Kihyun heard low growling coming from behind him and turned to see Changkyun glaring at them with red eyes and gnashing teeth. The brunette Korean placed himself in front of Shownu, shielding his lover from any of Changkyun’s oncoming assaults. “If you want to kill him, then kill me to!” Kihyun demanded. “I love him, not you; I love Shownu!” Changkyun growled once more before leaping at Kihyun, clawing and slashing at the small human, biting at his body as the brunette yelled in pain. Suddenly, Changkyun stopped and backed away from Kihyun as Kihyun fell onto his back in the snow next to Shownu. He felt hot blood pouring from the wounds on his body and knew that this would be how he died, but with the last of his strength, reached his hand over and touched Shownu’s, closing his eyes as a smile crept across his lips, not feelings a pair of hands rest upon his wounds.

When Kihyun opened his eyes next, he was back in the cabin with Shownu lying next to him. He wondered if it had all been a dream before seeing the shaman at the fireplace and felt the bandages around his torso. “Oh good, you’re awake,” the shaman noticed, bringing two cups to the bedside. “Shownu has awaken twice already, but gone back to sleep when he saw you were still out.” He handed one cup to Kihyun before shaking Shownu gently. The raven haired man opened his eyes as he and Kihyun looked at one another.

“You’re okay,” Shownu cried as he sat up and wrapped his arms around Kihyun gently. “I thought I lost you again.”

Kihyun was silent but slid his arms around Shownu as well, squeezing tears from his eyes as he felt Shownu tremble against him. “What happened? How am I still alive?” Kihyun asked.

“You sacrificed yourself to save the one you love; the gods decided that you are meant for Shownu and rewarded you for your valiant efforts,” the shaman explained.

“What about Changkyun, and the others?” Kihyun questioned.

“The gods determined that they were never going to change and took their spirits back to the afterlife; they are gone now,” the shaman informed. “They smile upon your soul Kihyun, it is pure and good; but like Shownu, now you must never leave the forest, you are bound to this place and to one another for a thousand years.”

Looking at Shownu, Kihyun placed a hand on his lover’s cheek and replied “I’m happy with that.” The two smiled at one another before Shownu took Kihyun’s face in his hands and kissed his lips.

A few months later, when spring had started in the forest and the snow was melting, a small deer reached up to eat some berries off of a low hanging tree branch. From a few feet away, a brown bear growled and began approaching the animal, hungry after a long hibernation. Before it could attack, a large black bear leaped in front of the deer, roaring at the brown bear aggressively as it used itself to protect the deer. The brown bear grunted before turning and leaving. Turning, the black bear looked at the deer and nudged its face against the deer gently, before the deer licked the face of the black bear. Both animals then began walking slowly side by side down the trail towards Shownu and Kihyun’s cabin, listening to the chirps of birds fill the forest.


End file.
